A feminist perspective on the study of home birth *1Application of a midwifery care framework

Rachel Goldstein shares her experience of exploring options related to care provider and place of birth early in her pregnancy. Goldstein and her husband, Marc, after reading and research, chose midwifery care and a home birth. She shares the story of a long labor at home supported by her husband, her doula, and her midwife. Her positive attitude, her ability to use various comfort strategies, and the support she received throughout labor contributed to being able to give birth naturally and ecstatically to her son Jonah.

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A mother-friendly hospital, birth center, or home birth service offers all birthing mothers unrestricted access to birth companions, labor support, and professional midwifery care.

How to Become Mother-Friendly ◽

10.1891/9780826129772.0001 ◽

2014 ◽

Author(s):

Marilyn Curl

Keyword(s):

Home Birth ◽

Midwifery Care ◽

Labor Support ◽

Birth Center ◽

Hospital Birth ◽

Unrestricted Access

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The Transformative Power of Birth

The Journal of Perinatal Education ◽

10.1891/1058-1243.28.4.186 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 28 (4) ◽

pp. 186-189

Keyword(s):

Home Birth ◽

The Other ◽

Midwifery Care ◽

Transformative Power ◽

First Child

A mother recalls the home birth of her first child. Her story exemplifies the power of birth when a mother is supported to listen to her body and labor on her own terms, and she praises the comfort of home birth and the respect of midwifery care. She emerges from the other side of her birth empowered and transformed, ready to embrace motherhood.

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Experiences of Women Planning a Home Birth Who Require Intrapartum Transfer to Hospital: A Metasynthesis of the Qualitative Literature

International Journal of Childbirth ◽

10.1891/2156-5287.4.2.103 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 103-119 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Deborah Fox ◽

Athena Sheehan ◽

Caroline Homer

Keyword(s):

Qualitative Research ◽

Qualitative Data ◽

Home Birth ◽

Midwifery Care ◽

Making Sense ◽

Planned Home Birth ◽

Experiences Of Women ◽

Continuity Of Carer ◽

Low Risk Women ◽

Qualitative Literature

Recent evidence supports the safety of planned home birth for low-risk women when professional midwifery care and adequate collaborative arrangements for referral and transfer are in place. The purpose of this article is to synthesize the qualitative literature on the experiences of women planning a home birth, who are subsequently transferred from home to hospital. A metasynthesis approach was selected because it aims to create a rich understanding of women’s experiences of transfer by synthesizing and interpreting qualitative data. Three categories were synthesized: “communication, connection, and continuity,” “making the transition,” and “making sense of events.” Quality and clarity of communication, feeling connected to the backup hospital, and continuity of midwifery carer helps make the transfer process as seamless as possible for women. Arriving at the hospital is a time of vulnerability and fear, and retaining the care of a known midwife is reassuring. New caregivers must also be sensitive to women’s need to be reassured and accepted. The reasons for transfer need to be clearly communicated both at the time of transfer and in more detail during the postpartum period. Women need to talk through their experience and to acknowledge their feelings of disappointment in order to move forward in the next phase of their lives. Continuity of carer enables this to be done by a known caregiver in a sensitive and individualized manner. Further qualitative research to examine home birth transfer issues, specifically in the Australian context, is currently being planned as part of the Birthplace in Australia project.

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Alternative patterns of nurse-midwifery care: III. The home birth movement

Journal of Nurse-Midwifery ◽

10.1016/0091-2182(76)90040-9 ◽

1976 ◽

Vol 21 (3) ◽

pp. 27-30 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

E HOSFORD

Keyword(s):

Home Birth ◽

Midwifery Care

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Finance and Faith at the Catholic Maternity Institute, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1944 –1969

Nursing History Review ◽

10.1891/1062-8061.18.151 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 151-166 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Anne Z. Cockerham ◽

Arlene W. Keeling

Keyword(s):

New Mexico ◽

Home Birth ◽

Student Experiences ◽

Spanish American ◽

Santa Fe ◽

Midwifery Care ◽

Medical Mission

In 1944, the Medical Mission Sisters opened the Catholic Maternity Institute in Santa Fe, New Mexico, primarily to serve patients of Spanish American descent. The Maternity Institute offered nurse-midwifery care and functioned as a school to train nurse-midwifery students. Originally planned as a home birth service, the Catholic Maternity Institute soon evolved into a service in which patients chose whether to deliver in their own homes or in a small freestanding building called La Casita. In fact, despite their idealism about home birth and strong feelings that home birth was best, the sisters experienced significant ambivalence concerning La Casita. Births there met many of the institute’s pragmatic needs for a larger number of student experiences, quick and safe transfers to a nearby hospital, and more efficient use of the midwives’ time. Importantly, as the sisters realized that many of their patients preferred to deliver at La Casita, they came to see that this option permitted these impoverished patients an opportunity to exercise some choice. However, the choice of many patients to deliver at La Casita—which was significantly more expensive for the Maternity Institute than home birth—eventually led to the demise of the Maternity Institute.

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