ARGENTINA: The Right to Give Birth Naturally

ARGENTINA: The Right to Give Birth Naturally
Marcela Valente

"BUENOS AIRES, Jun 7 (IPS) - An original media campaign in Argentina is aimed at raising women's awareness on their right to be accompanied in the delivery room, and to give birth in whatever position is most comfortable for them and without unnecessary medical interventions.

With financial support from the Dutch foundation Mama Cash, the Argentine non-governmental organisation Dando a Luz (Giving Birth) produced a series of television spots in which famous actors and models urge women to demand respect for their right to give birth the way they want.

. . . The ads refer to the rights of mothers and infants in delivery, which are recognised in a national law in effect since November 2004.

But the failure to disseminate information on the new law has facilitated the persistence in both public and private hospitals of traditional practices that run counter to the new legislation."

full story

Study Shows Home Birth Lowers Cesarean Risk

Study Shows Home Birth Lowers Cesarean Risk: "



"Based on these study results, women who want to avoid a cesarean should consider planning a home birth with a Certified Professional Midwife,: said Tonya Jamois, president of the International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN). "Double digit cesarean rates subject women and babies to the risks of preventable surgery and drive up the cost of health care for everyone."

(PRWEB) June 21, 2005 -- A landmark study published June 18 in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) shows planned home births with Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) result in significantly lower cesarean rates than planned hospital births. more . . .

Friends of Wisconsin Midwives

Friends of Wisconsin Midwives
STUDY SHOWS BENEFITS OF LICENSING HOME BIRTH MIDWIVES



June 17



Madison, WI



A study published today in The British Medical Journal shows the benefits of licensing Certified Professional Midwives, say representatives of the Friends of Wisconsin Midwives, a statewide grassroots network. The latest in a wide body of research on the safety of planned home birth, the study confirms that women who give birth in out-of-hospital settings with trained attendants experience outcomes equal to those of low-risk women giving birth in the hospital, but with much lower rates of surgical and technological intervention. Out-of-hospital births were also associated with a high degree of maternal satisfaction.



“This study shows all the reasons why it’s time for Wisconsin to join the ranks of states that fully integrate Certified Professional Midwives into their healthcare system, “ said Meg Collins, President of the Friends of Wisconsin Midwives. “The authors of the study noted that many of the midwives who participated in the research work in states like Wisconsin, where the lack of licensing and regulation often compromises their ability to establish collaborative relationships with other healthcare providers. “Yet unlicensed midwives still manage to provide outstanding care,” said Collins. “We believe that licensing Certified Professional Midwives will only enhance the options and level of care offered to Wisconsin families seeking alternatives to hospital birth. Giving birth at home and in free-standing birth centers are safe choices for women who want to minimize their risks of experiencing costly and often unnecessary interventions such as cesarean section, forceps and vacuum extraction, episiotomy, labor induction and augmentation, and epidurals.”



Certified Professional Midwives, who are specially trained to attend out-of-hospital births, undergo a rigorous educational program and are credentialed through the North American Registry of Midwives. According to the Friends of Wisconsin Midwives, there are currently over a dozen CPMs who provide services to a diverse population of families across the state. “The clients we typically see have educated themselves about the benefits of midwifery care, but that’s where the similarity ends. The families we work with run the gamut in terms of their political, cultural and religious values,” said Edie Wells, a Beloit-based CPM. “We work in both rural and urban areas with people from all economic backgrounds, including a large immigrant population and uninsured families who can’t afford the high cost of hospital birth, but want a safe alternative to giving birth unassisted.”



Expanding access to CPMs, say representatives of the Friends of Wisconsin Midwives, will result in increased savings to the state and will help meet the growing demand for a maternity care service that more families are seeking each year.



Twenty-two states have statutory provisions that provide full legal recognition to CPMs, according to

Katherine Prown, Ph.D., legislative chair of the Wisconsin Guild of Midwives. “Licensing offers a number of benefits, “ said Prown. “It assures the public that the midwives they hire have the appropriate training and skills and it provides for accountability. Right now, anyone can hang out a shingle and call themselves a midwife. We think families who choose to give birth outside of the hospital deserve better protection than that. This latest study reinforces what we’ve known all along—home birth with a trained attendant is a safe and reasonable option for the families of Wisconsin.”



##





CONTACT:



Katherine Prown, PhD

Legislative Chair, Wisconsin Guild of Midwive

kprown@birthpolicy.org





REFERENCE:



Outcomes of planned home births with certified professional midwives: large prospective study in North America -- Johnson and Daviss 330 (7505): 1416 -- BMJ

http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/330/7505/1416?ehom







RESOURCES:



Friends of Wisconsin Midwives

http://friendsofwimidwives.org/



National Association of Certified Professional Midwives

http://nacpm.net/

Mary Lawlor, President - (802) 387-4678

lawcing@sover.net



North American Registry of Midwives

http://narm.org/



Wisconsin Guild of Midwives

http://wisconsinguildofmidwives.org/

Supporting and Opposing Items on the ACNM's Agenda

ACNM Initiatives:

In conjunction with their 50th Annual Meeting in Washington, DC (June 10-16, 2005), the American College of Nurse-Midwives is lobbying congress to support the 'Improving Access to Nurse-Midwifery Care Act,' (HR 872 and S 911), legislation that would 'wipe out a reimbursement inequity that denies access to midwifery providers for women with disabilities,' and we urge citizens to contact their federal legislators to support those bills.

However, we urge you NOT to go along with their endorsement of knee-jerk/anti-consumer tort reform legislation. A better plan to contain or reduce malpractice liability premiums would include stricter oversight and regulation of premium increases by insurance companies, clearer codification of patients' federal rights to informed consent and refusal and stronger enforcement of existing 'unprofessional conduct' statutes at the state level.

We also support the ACNM's call for congressional review of the rapidly increasing cesarean rate, although we wish that that it would be expanded to investigate the risks and benefits of ALL medical interventions (i.e., interferences) that are increasingly common during childbirth. Furthermore, we urge the ACNM to undertake more strident efforts in the future to network with other professional and grassroots organizations re: this and every other item on their legislative agenda.

Repeat c-section may adversely affect baby

Health News Article | Reuters.com: "NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Compared with intending to deliver vaginally, choosing to undergo a repeat c-section may raise the risk that the newborn will be admitted to an advanced care nursery, according to a brief report. The researchers say women should be alerted to the possible negative effects.

The study, in the May issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, is the first to directly compare how choosing to undergo a repeat c-section rather than giving labor a try may affect the newborn, note Dr. Nicholas Fogelson and colleagues, from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston."

Los Angeles Times: Malpractice Payouts Have Not Soared, Reports Say

Los Angeles Times: Malpractice Payouts Have Not Soared, Reports Say: "Malpractice Payouts Have Not Soared, Reports Say
The two studies suggest jury awards have little to do with skyrocketing liability insurance rates.
By Lisa Girion
Times Staff Writer

June 1, 2005

There may be a medical malpractice crisis, but studies released Tuesday suggested that jackpot jury awards were not the cause.

Many doctors blame such judgments for skyrocketing insurance premiums. But the average malpractice claim payout rose about 4% a year from 1991 to 2003, according to a study published online by the academic journal Health Affairs."