Abstract
This banded dissertation uses a feminist approach to explore reproductive justice with a focus on informed consent practices in hospital labor and delivery units. The first Product is a conceptual article that explores informed consent as an ethical and legal practice as well as the consequences of absence of consent during hospital-based births. Because lack of consent is one of many factors that leads to high rates of patient mistreatment during birth, the paper argues that a new model for informed consent based in the practice of human rights would refocus informed consent on the rights of the individual, with the goal of reducing rates of patient mistreatment during birth. The second Product is a phenomenological study that explores workplace informed consent experiences of labor and delivery nurses. In interviews, nurses relayed instances in which they observed informed consent practices that did not truly inform patients, as well as procedures carried out without consent. The third and final Product is a poster presentation that was presented at the Postpartum Support International conference in Washington, DC in July 2024. The presentation addressed high rates of mistreatment reported by patients by proposing a human right based informed consent model.