Woman Offended By Hospital Form Referring To Mothers As ‘Birthing Parents.’
Woman Offended By Hospital Form Referring To Mothers As ‘Birthing Parents.’
A new mum’s shock at being handed a form with the words ‘birthing parent’ instead of ‘mother’ on it has sparked immediate action from the federal government.
Media personality Sall Grover, who recently had a child says she was offended after being handed the Medicare form in hospital. She took to Twitter to voice her anger at the change of ‘mother’s’ name. In the image she can be seen pointing out the form asking for the ‘birthing parent’s full name’ in one box and ‘birthing parent’s signature’ in another instead of ‘mother.’
“Attention women in Australia: On the form to put our newborn baby on our Medicare card, we are referred to as ‘birthing parent,” Ms Grover wrote. “Enough is enough. This absolute bull— is exclusionary, alienating and derogatory towards every woman who wants to be and is called “mother.” I know enough what is happening at the moment with women’s rights, and the erosion of our language and spaces, so I know where it’s coming from,’ she said.
TBH, I would have been outraged even if I wasn’t a mother.
“Birthing parent” is a derogatory term that only benefits the males who claim to be women, part of the attempt to dismantle the meaning of woman & womanhood & completely detach it from reality.
— Sall Grover (@salltweets) July 21, 2022
“It is dehumanising, ridiculous language,” she told the Today Show.“If the word ‘mother’ bothers you so much, motherhood is going to be quite a shock.”
Today host Ally Langdon, a mum herself, said she found the term ‘birthing parent’ dehumanising. “I feel divided about it if I’m perfectly honest. As someone who does identify as a mother, I see that and it’s sort off-putting to see birthing parent,’ she said. ‘It’s dehumanising to me. But I understand when the surrogate and, you know, it’s not one bill fits all.”
Following Ms. Grover’s complaint, the Albanese government reacted by saying the forms will have the term birthing parent promptly removed. Government Services Minister Bill Shorten has said he will scrap the gender inclusive forms stating, “When I was informed of this situation yesterday, I instructed the responsible officials they should cease using the previous government’s forms. They will be replaced with new forms that use the word mother, not birthing parent, which is consistent with other Medicare forms.”
The reason the forms were changed in the first place was to allow parents who didn’t identify as women to feel included when filling out hospital forms. Each year in Australia, several men give birth to children. In 2014-2015, as many as 55 men gave birth, according to Medicare records. This happens as not everyone will identify with the gender that matches the reproductive organs they were born with.
Images: Twitter
Chrystal Lovevintage
Chrystal is a writer and blogger who loves nothing more than watching back to back episodes of crime shows. Should she ever find herself needing to cover up a crime, she'll know exactly what to do! Her dream is to one day live in Palm Springs where she can do her writing poolside while drinking endless gin and tonics. Mum to the cutest twin boys in the world, she loves nothing more than the sound of their laughter (usually heard when they're conspiring against her). Entertainment writer and pop culture junkie, she will be bringing you all the celebrity gossip and news that your brain can handle. You can follow her blog at https://lovechrystal.com.au and on Instagram at Chrystalovevintage
