Reclaiming traditional midwifery (Ecuador)

Medicinal plants grown in plots using forest species are efficiently used for different problems, and represent an alternative for a sustainable economy for the midwives, and help to guarantee the intellectual rights and property of Quichua medicine.

Multicultural states which, like Ecuador, comprise many indigenous peoples, are developing policies of support and strengthening traditional health systems through community participation; the work of traditional midwives stands out, as in some places they have formed associations like the Asociación de Parteras Kichwas del Alto Napo (AMUPAKIN).

The Amazon region where AMUPAKIN is based has high levels of poverty and 30% of deliveries are at home, usually assisted by traditional midwives. They grow and pick remedies in their herb plots as can be seen in the picture: cruz caspi (local name), used in different concentrations to regulate menstruation, as a contraceptive and for haemorrhages after delivery.