Home birth and your midwife

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) advises that hospital is the safest place to give birth.

However, if your and your baby are healthy and there haven’t been any complications with your pregnancy, there’s no reason why you can’t plan a home birth – and the American College of Nurse-Midwives supports it among women who are good candidates and who have experienced caregivers on hand. You may be advised against home birth if there might be a risk to your baby or you during labor.

If you choose to have a home birth you’ll need to arrange care with a nurse-midwife. She’ll carry out all your prenatal care and routine checkups, referring you to hospital for screening and diagnostic tests. Once you go into labor, she’ll attend you at home. She’ll be able to deal with a normal delivery and will support and encourage you in using breathing techniques and different positions to help you cope with your contractions. You may also want to consider hiring a birthing pool to use for pain relief – you can choose to deliver your baby in the pool if your nurse-midwife is experienced in water birth. Keep in mind that you won‘t be able to have an epidural at a home birth as this has to be administered by an anesthesiologist, and narcotic pain relief won’t be available either.

If any complications arise during your labor your nurse-midwife is trained to recognize them and will have you transferred to hospital straightaway for medical intervention.

See also home birth, in gurgle’s Labor and Birth section.

• The American Pregnancy Association (www.americanpregnancy.org) has an online midwife finder.

The information in this feature is intended for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your health, the health of your child or the health of someone you know, please consult with a doctor or other healthcare professional.

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Last Modified: 18/06/2007

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