ICM affirms every woman's right to a birth companion of choice throughout labour, birth, and postnatal care, in all settings and modes of birth. Urges policymakers, facilities, and midwives to end non-evidence-based restrictions and enshrine this right.

A new mixed-methods study looks at how counselling, consent, and debriefing for cesarean sections actually play out across hospitals in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh in India. Offers critical evidence for strengthening respectful CCD practices in maternal care systems.

An evidence round-up mapping how RMC is and isn't being taught to pre-service health workers — a useful reference for ARMCC members working on training and curriculum design.

Synthesizing 17 studies across 15 LMICs, including India and Nepal, this review shows how caste, poverty, age, and marital status compound to shape a woman's experience of RMC, and offers a conceptual model linking these factors to concrete accountability measures.

A scoping review of 61 studies across seven South Asian countries (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka) identifying ten themes of neglect, disrespect, and abuse in institutional birth settings, disproportionately affecting socially disadvantaged women. Calls for sustained investment in training and policy reform to mandate equitable RMC across the region.

A step-by-step guide on why and how to run a workshop on Respectful Maternity Care for midwives, including videos, lesson plans, PowerPoint slides, reference documents, and a facilitator guide. Materials are designed to be adapted for local use.

A practical resource guide organised across five domains of Respectful Maternity Care — dignity, communication, autonomy in decision-making, informed consent, and accountability offering actionable strategies for embedding person-centred practices into routine maternity care delivery.