April is

Cesarean Awareness Month

#CesareanAwarenessMonth

#EducateSupportAdvocate

#ICANadvocate

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What is Cesarean Awareness Month?

  • April is Cesarean Awareness Month (CAM)!
  • CAM focuses on all topics surrounding cesareans, including reducing preventable cesareans, supporting cesarean recovery, and advocating for vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC).
  • ICAN was founded in 1982 as a grassroots movement to serve these needs.
  • We need your help to grow Cesarean Awareness! Download and share the info-graphics, start a fundraiser, spread the word!
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Cesareans…

Why the Need

For Awareness

  • Researchers estimate that almost half of the cesareans performed could be safely prevented.
  • If families don’t know they have other options, they cannot advocate for themselves.
  • Cesareans can be “family friendly” depending on facility practices and protocols and provider support.
  • Preventable cesareans may be responsible for up to 20,000 major surgical complications a year, including sepsis, hemorrhage, and organ injury.
  • Future risks to birthing people and their future pregnancies and children are often not mentioned.
Advocacy Membership
ICAN of Central Iowa chapter leaders tabling in the Iowa Capitol rotunda for the inaugural Maternal and Infant Health Day.
ICAN of Central Iowa chapter leaders tabling in the Iowa Capitol rotunda for the inaugural Maternal and Infant Health Day.

Call to Action

Woman writing in a notebook, capturing a moment of focused concentration.

Key Messages

  • Lowering the rate of preventable cesareans is vital to improving maternal-child health.
  • Policies do not override a persons’ right to informed decision making.
  • VBAC bans are unethical and unenforceable for hospitals to institute. People have the right to informed refusal, which includes declining a cesarean.
  • For most people, VBAC carries lower risks than a repeat cesarean.
  • A healthy birth incorporates emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being.
  • When a cesarean is necessary, it can be a lifesaving technique, and worth the risks involved.