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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