Want to know how Utah
home birth midwives are doing?
Click here to read the Utah Health Department
report.
Click here to read the Report of Outcomes for
Utah Licensed Direct-Entry Midwives.
Choosing a
supportive care provider.
"Choosing to remain
in an unhealthy relationship with a caregiver is as
harmful as remaining in an unhealthy relationship
with anyone else...maybe more so." ~ Kim
Wildner, author of Mother's Intention
The training and approach of midwives and
obstetricians are quite different. Doctors are
trained to view birth as a medical event--an
emergency waiting to happen. If that's what they
believe about birth, it's not difficult to
understand why they are so quick to intervene. If
they do something, they're somehow controlling it.
They can more easily predict what will happen next.
Unfortunately, the things that many doctors do to
birth have been shown to be harmful rather than
beneficial.
Midwives, on the other hand, view birth as the
normal, natural process that it is. Midwives know
that 90% of the time everything goes perfectly.
Mothers' bodies know how to give birth and babies
know how to be born so midwives leave the process
alone unless a special circumstance warrants their
interfering. When midwives do intervene, they are
more likely to use the least invasive option--the
one that carries the least amount of risk to mother
and baby--before going onto something more invasive.
The care you receive from a midwife is much more
personal and holistic than the care you typically
receive from a doctor. The average length of a
pre-natal doctor's appointment is 5-10 minutes
whereas most home birth midwives will meet with
their clients for 30 minutes+. A midwife has more
time to get to know you and for you to really get to
know her. A midwife cares about your emotional
needs in addition to your physical needs.
Doulas and midwives work wonderfully together to
provide a full spectrum of support to pregnant and
birthing women.
Remember:
"We know the five standards of safe childbearing
are:
-
Good nutrition
-
Skillful midwifery
-
Natural childbirth
-
Homebirth
-
Breastfeeding
"What kind of commitment have you made to your
baby's safety based on this knowledge? Are your
choices based on scientific knowledge or
obstetric myths?" (Kim Wildner, Mother's
Intention, p. 118)
Is homebirth in Utah legal?
Yes! Thank you to all who worked so hard to
support the Direct-Entry Midwife Act during the
2005 session. The Direct-Entry Midwife Act
allows midwives to become licensed through the
state and legally be able to perform certain
"medical" tasks as well as carry emergency tools and equipment such as pitocin
for severe postpartum bleeding and numbing
medication to suture a perineal tear. The Act
makes midwifery legal for all direct-entry
midwives, regardless of whether or not they
pursue licensure, but these midwives will not be
able to legally obtain and use
federally-regulated medications. Only Utah
state Licensed Direct-Entry Midwives are
authorized to use the medications. State
licensure requirements will be based on the
requirements for the
North American Registry of Midwives
Certified Professional Midwife credential.
You may wish to join the consumer group Utah
Friends of Midwives. This organization worked
to pass the Direct-Entry Midwife Act and now can
turn its attention to promoting the midwifery
model of care. We have a yahoogroup (email
list, see below) that you may join to help the
cause of midwifery. We also have a website:
www.utahfriendsofmidwives.org.
"The doula is more likely to support a client
early in labor in her home than a midwife in a busy
hospital practice. At a home birth or birth center
birth, the midwife and the doula would be able to
support each other while extending their emotional
and physical energy to provide care for the laboring
woman. " ~ Kathleen McClelland, midwife
Doulas and midwives work wonderfully together to
provide a full spectrum of support to pregnant and
birthing women.
"Will I need a doula if I have a midwife (and her
midwife assistants)?"
Only you know the answer to this question
(and it may vary birth by birth), but as a doula
I absolutely love attending midwife-attended
births, especially home births because I can
focus solely on providing labor support rather
than having to worry so much about protecting my
client's birth space.
Things to consider:
- Your midwife will be providing labor
support, but also must perform clinical
tasks relating to your labor. As your
doula, my focus is fully on your emotional
and physical comfort.
- As your doula I will know more
completely what type of birth experience you
desire to have and will be aware of any
emotional issues that may factor into the
birth and will be able to help communicate
your wishes to your midwife, her assistants,
and anyone else who may be at your birth.
You may or may not have an in depth
relationship with your midwife's assistants.
- Each person attending a birth brings
something unique to offer the laboring woman
in terms of labor support. I have attended
four home births with midwives and never
felt like I wasn't needed.
- You may want labor support early on in
your labor, but don't feel like calling your
midwife, yet. As your doula I will come as
early as you want me and stay with you
throughout your labor.
- Midwives and doulas complement each
other. We ease each other's load, which
allows us to give fuller support to the
client we serve.
I have had two home births. At my first home
birth (second baby) I didn't feel like I wanted
or needed a doula. My birth experience was
almost exactly the way I wanted it (with the
exception of my husband sleeping through most of
my labor). During my third pregnancy (second
home birth) I felt like I did want a doula.
This birth was much more intense and I relied
heavily on my doula's support. I will probably
hire a doula for every birth because I had such
a good experience.
"Midwives and Doulas: How They Support the Birthing
Woman" by Kathleen McClelland (midwife) and Pam
Cass (doula).
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