Kraamzorg system, where care assistants visit new mothers at home, is threatened by labour shortage and competition
A key pillar of Dutch maternity services that has led to the Netherlands being hailed as a world leader in postnatal care is under threat, healthcare unions in the country have warned.
The Netherlands has long prided itself on its unique system of kraamzorg (maternity care), whereby a maternity care assistant comes to a new family’s home for eight days after a baby’s birth, caring for mother and infant.
But on Tuesday, five healthcare unions are expected to present a manifesto and petition of almost 15,000 signatures to MPs in The Hague, warning that a shortage of labour and competition from other care jobs have left the system facing crisis.
The petition calls for a guarantee of the future of good kraamzorg for all mothers and newborns in the Netherlands.
