A leading voice in obstetrics and maternal health, Dr. Amina Yamgnane, has urged health professionals and the general public in Lagos to rethink the approach to women’s care before, during, and after childbirth.
Her message was delivered at a special conference titled, “Rethinking Maternity Care,” held at the Alliance Française de Lagos.
Dr. Yamgnane, a French-Togolese obstetrician-gynecologist specializing in fetal medicine and high-risk pregnancies, brings over 15 years of experience from top European hospitals.
She currently heads the Maternity Department at the American Hospital of Paris and leads France’s national working group on Respectful Maternity Care.
This event marked Dr. Yamgnane’s first return to the African continent in years, a personal initiative driven by her desire to reconnect, listen, and learn from local realities.
Her distinguished career includes serving as Chief Resident at Cliniques Saint-Luc (Belgium), roles at Necker Hospital in Paris, and founding La Clinique des Femmes in Paris in 2016, a pioneering center for human-centered, trauma-informed care.
The conference convened a diverse audience including doctors, midwives, nurses, hospital directors, medical educators, and healthcare investors. The central question addressed was how to provide care that is not only clinically safe but also respectful, dignified, and truly adapted to women’s lived experiences.
In an era where maternity care can often be perceived as overly technical, depersonalized, or even violent, the event served as a collective call to pause, reflect, and act.
“This is more than a talk. It’s an invitation to transform,” Dr. Yamgnane stated, encouraging all stakeholders in maternal health, from delivery rooms to policy rooms, to envision and implement a new standard of care that genuinely prioritizes women’s voices, respects their choices, and supports caregivers in achieving these goals.