Tuesday's Topic 8/12/08

earthgirl · 08-12-2008, 11:01 AM

What are the most important issues facing childbearing women in your community? Based on your general knowledge, and observations of your own community. Obviously, you may choose more than one.

Joyce in the mtns. · 08-12-2008, 11:56 AM

Been looking at this a long time. If we had a more local birth center, families from some neighboring communities north of me wouldn't have to go 80 miles or more to birth in the most local hospital.

There is a community that has a health center and is less than 15 minutes from the hospital by emergency vehicle. Seems that community could be a reasonable location for a birthing center.

Driving/riding 80 miles one way to give birth is just crazy. As long as it is accepted by women and families, it will continue. I think it is time for something to change.

J.

Joyce in the mtns. · 08-12-2008, 12:06 PM

Sorry... double post!

doula Michele · 08-12-2008, 02:15 PM

No midwives, and the majority of women choose between the 3 major care providers. Over 90 babies a month split between mostly 2OB's and 1GP.
That of course leads to more scheudaled births and more c-sections.

DoulaKaren · 08-12-2008, 02:22 PM

I think the biggest obstacle in our area is that the largest hospital group in our area has consolidated all the L&D services to one hospital -- and they didn't take the time to remodel or renovate the LDRs or postpartum units into anything any good before they consolidated. Really not great. So there really isn't a ton of choice. Additionally, homebirth is not really much of an option in Pgh. When I have a kiddo next, as a vbac mom, I could either deliver with a midwife at "the baby factory," at a smaller regional hospital with an ob/gyn, or at a city hospital that is really quite far but with the midwives from the midwife center.

freespiritbirth · 08-13-2008, 08:32 AM

In my community, Albuquerque, we have everything available to women: hospital, home, birth center...insurance is required to pay for home birth, there are plenty of midwives, super flexible with immunizations, few MDs who want to do circ...the problem: no one knows about all that's available to them!! Extra frustrating!!!! I hate the word "education" but I guess no other fits...they are just unaware that women have choice.

earthgirl · 08-13-2008, 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by freespiritbirth

In my community, Albuquerque, we have everything available to women: hospital, home, birth center...insurance is required to pay for home birth, there are plenty of midwives, super flexible with immunizations, few MDs who want to do circ...the problem: no one knows about all that's available to them!! Extra frustrating!!!! I hate the word "education" but I guess no other fits...they are just unaware that women have choice.

I was interviewed by a woman last year who was originally from New Mexico. I wanted to tell her to go back to her home state to give birth! She had a horrible doctor, but didn't want to hurt her feelings by switching.

Wendy79 · 08-13-2008, 11:20 AM

I was interested to see that several people marked "doula shortage" as one of the main problems in the area. Are people really getting more inquiries than they can handle? Or is it more like, a shortage of KNOWLEDGE about doulas?

swissmiss · 08-15-2008, 11:51 AM

I picked finding a good care provider after much thought. Even though my state has a grand total of TWO BC and homebirth ultimately means UC because there's a prohibition on MW-assisted homebirths, I still think that a good care provider is the penultimate factor in how a woman's childbirth experience turns out and how she feels about it.

And I suppose for full disclosure purposes I should define "good."

Good, to me, means a careprovider that practices evidence-based care, values the family's opinions and desires and goals for their own personal childbirth experience, sees his/her role as facilitating those goals, and doesn't see pregnancy/labor/birth as a medical condition but rather a natural process that may or may not need some active management.

AmandaB · 08-15-2008, 11:58 AM

I picked good care provider, because it seems like people just are funneled down by their GP as they no longer do PN care or catch babies. We are seriously lacking in midwives; they are limited by the government to only have 4 primary and 4 backup birth a month, also they are 3 schools of practice however you can only apply to one and they graduate only 40 new midwives a year. OBs are over seeing 80% of births in Ontario where only 5% of women actually require OB supervision....

We also only have the option of homebirth or hospital, there are no free-standing birthing centres.

Inductions and surgical birth has become big business. More and more women are being told that they will be induced as quickly as 7dys past "due" and in Toronto our surgical birth rate is creeping ever closer to 30%.

scarborogal · 08-15-2008, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AmandaB

I picked good care provider, because it seems like people just are funneled down by their GP as they no longer do PN care or catch babies. We are seriously lacking in midwives; they are limited by the government to only have 4 primary and 4 backup birth a month, also they are 3 schools of practice however you can only apply to one and they graduate only 40 new midwives a year. OBs are over seeing 80% of births in Ontario where only 5% of women actually require OB supervision....

We also only have the option of homebirth or hospital, there are no free-standing birthing centres.

Inductions and surgical birth has become big business. More and more women are being told that they will be induced as quickly as 7dys past "due" and in Toronto our surgical birth rate is creeping ever closer to 30%.

Yeah, what she said!

Ohio Doula · 09-10-2008, 02:34 PM

Late here, but my answer would be all of the above

b'earth angel · 09-10-2008, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wendy79

I was interested to see that several people marked "doula shortage" as one of the main problems in the area. Are people really getting more inquiries than they can handle? Or is it more like, a shortage of KNOWLEDGE about doulas?

Definately a shortage of KNOWLEDGE about doulas here Wendy. I feel like I'm banging my head against a brick wall talking to some folks about doula work.

Ohio Doula · 09-10-2008, 03:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by b'earth angel

Definately a shortage of KNOWLEDGE about doulas here Wendy. I feel like I'm banging my head against a brick wall talking to some folks about doula work.

same here. I had someone interested until they found out you have to pay for a doula

b'earth angel · 09-10-2008, 04:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ohio Doula

same here. I had someone interested until they found out you have to pay for a doula

Yes, my last "potential" client was all interested until she finally admitted that she couldn't afford to hire a doula, even then I was willing to work w/her but she wasn't. And my fee of $250 is a drop in the bucket to some of the fees I've seen discussed. We are a rural area and I'm the only active doula here so I've tried to stay 'affordable'. Still I'm getting nowhere fast!