"Why Homebirths are Worth Considering" by Melissa Cheyney
Some highlights:
"The answer among the U.S. medical establishment has been to throw more expensive technology at the problem rather than retracing our steps to see where we went wrong. Instead of admitting that something is fundamentally broken with the system, organizations like the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology continue to endorse the idea that medicalized hospital births are the only safe route for women."
"While maternal mortality rates decreased among our peer nations between 2000 and 2005, they increased by more than 54 percent in the United States during the same time period. The two major differences between the U.S. and other nations, which have superior maternal and infant health outcomes, are that the latter offer universal health care and rely more extensively on cost-effective midwives as a public health strategy."
There is a critique (one of many) of the Dr. Joseph Wax study on homebirths published recently in AJOG, siting faulty research methods and accusing the study of deepening our nations overall distrust of midwives.
It's a good read. Thanks, Melissa!
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