|
Below:On June 7, 2012, Channel 7 News ran a report detailing an unregistered midwife’s defence against the criticisms of a South Australian coroner. The report also includes a comment from Hannah Dahlen, Associate Professor of Midwifery at the University of Western Sydney, arguing that making supported home birth more difficult will encourage those who wish to give birth at home to do so without help.
Below: On June 6, 2012, ABC News included a report detailing a recent South Australian coroner’s findings after the death of three infants delivered at home. The coroner is calling for it to be made an offence for an unregistered midwife to assist at a home birth. He has also called for better antenatal education surrounding birthing practices and for the establishment of more hospital birthing centres. Below: On January 30, 2012, Channel 7 News reported the death of a prominent Victorian advocate for home birthing shortly after the home birth of her second child. The birth was attended by private midwives and a coroner’s investigation is to be undertaken into the death. Below: On Nov 13, 2010, ABC News reported on a draft report yet to be released by the Western Australian Health Department purports to show that babies born at home are four times as likely to die than those delivered in hospital. |
 Web links, documents |
Homebirth Australia is an advocacy group promoting the right of Australian women to be able to access home birth.
The group's internet site can be found at http://www.homebirthaustralia.org/who-homebirth-australia
In 1996 the British Medical Journal (BMJ) published a study of the outcomes of planned home and planned hospital births in low risk pregnancies using midwives in The Netherlands. The study concluded the outcome of planned home births is at least as good as that of planned hospital births in women at low risk receiving midwifery care in the Netherlands.
An abstract of this study and these findings can be found at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2352715/
The study can be read in full as a pdf at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2352715/pdf/bmj00569-0041.pdf
(Please note, you will need to scroll down about half way through the opening page to find the relevant study.)
In 2005 The British Medical Journal (BMJ) published the findings of a study by Kenneth C Johnson and Betty-Anne Daviss titled 'Outcomes of planned home births with certified midwives: large prospective study in North America'
The study concluded 'Planned home birth for low risk women in North America using certified professional midwives was associated with lower rates of medical intervention but similar ... neonatal mortality to that of low risk hospital births in the United States.'
The full text of the article outlining this study can be found at http://www.commonwealthmidwives.org/pdfs/bmj%20study.pdf
On July 4, 2007, the South Australian Health Department released its 'Policy for
Planned Birth at Home in South Australia'. The full text of this document can be found at http://www.nmh.uts.edu.au/cmcfh/research/policy.pdf
On January 17, 2010, the Australian Medical Association (AMA) published a report drawing the public's attention to a recent statistical study pointing the risks associated with home birth. The AMA does not support the practice.
The full text of the report can be found at http://ama.com.au/node/5275
On July 9, 2010, The Herald Sun published an opinion piece by Susie O'Brien commenting on the risks associated with home birth and focusing on the experiences of Australian entertainer Dannii Minogue whose attempted home birth had recently had to be completed in a hospital setting.
The full text of this report can be found at http://www.heraldsun.com.au/opinion/home-birth-not-worth-risk-dannii/story-e6frfhqf-1225889562865
On July 9, 2010, The Border Mail published a report by John Conroy in which the claim is made that the successful birth of Dannii Minogue's son shows the safety of home birth as when something unexpected occurs the delivery can be concluded at a hospital.
The full text of this article can be found at http://www.bordermail.com.au/story/52032/dannii-showed-home-birth-safe/
On July 31, 2010, the British medical journal, The Lancet, published an editorial warning against the dangers of home birth following its publication of a study indicating the risks associated with home birthing.
The full text of the editorial can be found at http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2810%2961165-8/fulltext
In 2011 Australian College of Midwives published a Homebirth Literature Review. The review looks at the safety findings of a wide range of studies conducted between 1995 and 2011. The review concludes 'It seems evident from the literature that planned home birth is a safe option for women who are at low risk of complications and who receive care from qualified attendants with adequate access to support, advice, referral and transfer mechanisms.'
The full text of this review can be found at http://www.midwives.org.au/lib/pdf/documents/Homebirth_Literature.pdf
On March 29, 2011, the online academic opinion site, The Conversation, published a point of view by Maralyn Foureur, Professor of Midwifery at University of Technology, Sydney. Professor Foureur argues that hospitals need to supply flexible, well-equipped birthing centres to help meet the needs of women who want a less clinical option.
The full text of this comment can be found at http://theconversation.edu.au/hospital-birth-units-make-stress-heads-out-of-mums-460
On November 11, 2011, the online media commentary site Crikey published a comment by Dr Andrew Pesce, a Sydney obstetrician and gynaecologist and former president of the Australian Medical Association, defending a review of planned home births in South Australia between 1991 and 2006 which indicated a statistically significant increase in the numbers of babies dying following a planned home birth.
The full text of Dr Pesce's comment can be found at http://blogs.crikey.com.au/croakey/2011/11/11/concerns-continue-about-unsafe-home-birth-practices-dr-andrew-pesce/
On November 14, 2011, the online media commentary site Crikey published a comment by Hannah Dahlen, Associate Professor of Midwifery, University of Western Sydney, and national media spokesperson for the Australian College of Midwives. Dahlen takes issue with Dr Andrew Pesce, a Sydney obstetrician and gynaecologist and former president of the Australian Medical Association in his opposition to home birthing and suggests the need for a more wide-ranging debate whose ultimate goal should be making all births - whether they take place at home or in hospitals - as safe as possible.
The full text of this comment can be found at http://blogs.crikey.com.au/croakey/2011/11/14/home-births-its-time-to-broaden-the-focus-of-the-debate/
On January 31, 2012, The Punch published an opinion piece by Tory Shepherd titled 'Home births are prone to many complications'. Shepherd argues that pregnant women need to be able to make an informed choice about the type of birth that is best for them and their children; however, she is concerned about the misinformation minimising the risks associated with home birth.
The full text of this opinion can be found at http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/home-births-are-prone-to-many-complications/
On January 31, 2012, Herald Sun commentator Susie O'Brien posted a blog comment titled 'Homebirthing is just too risky'. The post attracted 189 comments.
O'Brien's opinion and the posted responses can be accessed at http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/seewhatsusiesays/index.php/heraldsun/comments/homebirthing_is_just_too_risky/
On March 15, 2012, The Atlantic published a comment by Adam Wolfberg, an obstetrician specializing in high-risk pregnancies at Tufts Medical Center in Boston and an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at Tufts University School of Medicine. Professor Wolfberg argues that all births should take place in a hospital. The full text of this article can be found at http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/03/the-case-for-hospital-births/254304/
On May 29, 2012, the online academic opinion site, The Conversation, published a point of view by Hannah Dahlen, Associate Professor of Midwifery at University of Western Sydney. The comment is titled 'Pushing home birth underground raises safety concerns'. Dahlen argues that making supported home birth more difficult will simply encourage those who wish to give birth at home to do so at greater risk.
The full text of this opinion piece can be found at http://theconversation.edu.au/pushing-home-birth-underground-raises-safety-concerns-6825
On June 25, 2012, the online academic opinion site, The Conversation, published a point of view by Meredith McIntyre, Senior Lecturer in Midwifery at Monash University. The comment concludes, 'There's now sufficient international evidence to support the conclusion that there's no difference in the safety of healthy mothers who give birth in hospital or at home when they are in the care of qualified midwives working within rigorous guidelines.'
The full text can be found at http://theconversation.edu.au/home-birth-is-a-viable-and-safe-option-for-most-women-6885
On June 28, 2012, a New South Wales coroner found that found a Sydney home birth contributed "unnecessarily" to the death of a baby girl and stated that expectant parents need to be aware of the dangers of bringing a child into the world without medical help. The birth occurred without the aid of a midwife.
A report on the coroner's findings was published in The Telegraph and can be accessed at http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/business/breaking-news/baby-died-after-cord-entanglement-coroner/story-e6freuz0-1226410986230
