SINGAPORE: Parents of stillborn children could soon choose to register names for them if proposed amendments to a law are passed.
"This is in recognition that stillbirths are similar to the loss of any child, which can be a painful experience for parents, and the official naming of a stillborn child may help some bereaved parents," the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in a media release on Monday (Nov 6) when the proposed amendments were introduced in parliament.
The Registration of Births and Deaths Act was last amended in 2021.
Under the proposed changes, a stillborn child would be defined as one after 24 weeks of pregnancy, up from the current 22 weeks.
While parents of stillborn babies get digital stillbirth certificates currently, the children's names are not listed.
MHA said that before the proposed changes are implemented, parents may apply for a commemorative birth certificate with their stillborn child's name for remembrance purposes, via the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA).
That was what Ms Mandy Too and Mr Aidan Hoy did as highlighted in a CNA report in October.
Desperate for some official recognition of the names of her stillborn twins - Abigail and Lara - Ms Too started an online petition in April which garnered about 2,800 signatures.
In early October, the couple received an email from ICA informing them that they could apply for a commemorative birth certificate for the twins.
The authority told CNA that it started issuing commemorative birth certificates to parents of stillborn children on Oct 1.
Although the certificates are issued by ICA and bear the names of the stillborn children, it is not an official, legal document.
In a written reply to a parliamentary question from Associate Professor Jamus Lim (WP-Sengkang) in September 2022, Minister for Home Affairs and Law K Shanmugam noted that the names of stillborn children are not required for the government to administer public policies.
The registration process was also designed to be fully automated without parents having to take any action, to alleviate any administrative burden while they may still be grieving, he said then.
At the time, ICA had only received one request to register the names of their stillborn children so far, Mr Shanmugam added.
Explaining the decision to potentially amend the definition of a stillborn child to after 24 weeks of pregnancy, MHA said this is to align with what is set out in the Termination of Pregnancy Act, which states that an abortion after 24 weeks of pregnancy is only allowed in the case of medical exigencies.
There has also been feedback from the medical community that the current 22-week threshold for what is considered a stillborn child - set in law in 2021 to align with the World Health Organization’s reporting guidelines - may be misinterpreted as an indication of fetal viability, or the ability of a human fetus to survive outside the uterus.
This may cause confusion for parents facing “important and difficult decisions” about medical interventions for their unborn child, MHA said in its press release.
It added that the medical community is also concerned that such ambiguities may lead to pressure on doctors to use more liberal treatment for infants born between 22 and 24 weeks of pregnancy, or resuscitation.
This could, in turn, result in potentially severe neurodevelopmental disabilities in infants who survive, and higher rates of futile attempts at resuscitation, MHA said.
The Bill therefore amends the threshold in the definition of a stillborn child to after 24 weeks of pregnancy.
"This will remove any confusion regarding fetal viability," MHA said.
"Additionally, the Bill will make clear the existing position that abortion is not considered a stillbirth."
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"This is in recognition that stillbirths are similar to the loss of any child, which can be a painful experience for parents, and the official naming of a stillborn child may help some bereaved parents," the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in a media release on Monday (Nov 6) when the proposed amendments were introduced in parliament.
The Registration of Births and Deaths Act was last amended in 2021.
Under the proposed changes, a stillborn child would be defined as one after 24 weeks of pregnancy, up from the current 22 weeks.
COMMEMORATIVE CERTIFICATES FOR NOW
While parents of stillborn babies get digital stillbirth certificates currently, the children's names are not listed.
MHA said that before the proposed changes are implemented, parents may apply for a commemorative birth certificate with their stillborn child's name for remembrance purposes, via the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA).
That was what Ms Mandy Too and Mr Aidan Hoy did as highlighted in a CNA report in October.
Desperate for some official recognition of the names of her stillborn twins - Abigail and Lara - Ms Too started an online petition in April which garnered about 2,800 signatures.
In early October, the couple received an email from ICA informing them that they could apply for a commemorative birth certificate for the twins.
Related:
The authority told CNA that it started issuing commemorative birth certificates to parents of stillborn children on Oct 1.
Although the certificates are issued by ICA and bear the names of the stillborn children, it is not an official, legal document.
In a written reply to a parliamentary question from Associate Professor Jamus Lim (WP-Sengkang) in September 2022, Minister for Home Affairs and Law K Shanmugam noted that the names of stillborn children are not required for the government to administer public policies.
The registration process was also designed to be fully automated without parents having to take any action, to alleviate any administrative burden while they may still be grieving, he said then.
At the time, ICA had only received one request to register the names of their stillborn children so far, Mr Shanmugam added.
DEFINITION OF STILLBORN CHILDREN
Explaining the decision to potentially amend the definition of a stillborn child to after 24 weeks of pregnancy, MHA said this is to align with what is set out in the Termination of Pregnancy Act, which states that an abortion after 24 weeks of pregnancy is only allowed in the case of medical exigencies.
There has also been feedback from the medical community that the current 22-week threshold for what is considered a stillborn child - set in law in 2021 to align with the World Health Organization’s reporting guidelines - may be misinterpreted as an indication of fetal viability, or the ability of a human fetus to survive outside the uterus.
This may cause confusion for parents facing “important and difficult decisions” about medical interventions for their unborn child, MHA said in its press release.
It added that the medical community is also concerned that such ambiguities may lead to pressure on doctors to use more liberal treatment for infants born between 22 and 24 weeks of pregnancy, or resuscitation.
This could, in turn, result in potentially severe neurodevelopmental disabilities in infants who survive, and higher rates of futile attempts at resuscitation, MHA said.
The Bill therefore amends the threshold in the definition of a stillborn child to after 24 weeks of pregnancy.
"This will remove any confusion regarding fetal viability," MHA said.
"Additionally, the Bill will make clear the existing position that abortion is not considered a stillbirth."
Continue reading...