Childbirth Around the World

I recently began following a blog called Pregnancy and Childbirth Around the World. It is written by a mom in london who is interested in anthropology and birth practices in other countries. She does her own research on her own time, simply out of curiosity, and writes them up to share!


In a recent post, she wrote "The Bariba culture believes that witch babies can be detected by certain signs at birth... Every Bariba woman approaches childbirth knowing that she might give birth to a witch baby."

In How Much Sex is Enough? She explores the idea that "having sex just once cannot make a baby according to some cultures - they believe that a couple needs to have sex repeatedly over a number of days or even weeks to create a foetus."

In Grass Hut Caesareans she describes how People in Uganda were performing successful Caesareans before they were done in Europe.

Another post is on conception with two fathers - In many Amazonian cultures, people believe that a child can be fathered by more than one man, and many women seek out trysts with many men that they wish to contribute to the biological formation, as well as the social and economical support, of their child.

I also found this interesting site and blog: Birth Around the World. It appears that a couple is traveling to countries all over the world just to look at childbirth in those places! From their website:

We plan to travel to 30 countries in a period of 9 months. While we travel, we'll be capturing on film, photos, and writing the reality of each country's birthing practices. We'll be posting what we find on this website. The information will highlight aspects of the culture in general and those aspects of the culture with beliefs specific to birth and the birthing process. We'll also be sharing birth stories of people we meet along the way, and we'll be sharing important information about maternal and newborn death rates, the health care system, and more. We'll include birth footage; interviews with people on the street, pregnant woman, mothers, fathers and children, health care providers, and others.

I'm joining in late, and it appears that they've already been to several countries. Take a look at their blog to catch up or follow along - they're recently in Australia!

Video: Birth in the Car

This is what it looks like to have a baby in the car:



I love how totally calm she is!

Doula for a Home Birth

I think its interesting that most people I encounter who know little to nothing about doulas right away tend to assume that I attend only home births. They'll ask something about if I do mostly home births or if I'll do hospital births, too, or if I only do births in water, or even if I catch babies. "Doula," if its even known, is assumed to be a "hippy" or "alternative" choice, associated with birthing at home. In reality, if I only attended home births, I might not have very many to attend! 99% of women in the U.S. deliver in the hospital. If I want to have any doula clients, in the hospital I must be! And, indeed, the reason many women hire a doula is precisely because they are giving birth in a hospital.

I also think its interesting, then, that many people who do think about planning a home birth do not think that a doula is even necessary at a home birth at all. Many say that they have a midwife, what do they need a doula for? Won't the midwife do everything that a doula does? In reality, this varies. Some midwives may not show up early in labor, and may wait until the time seems close to attend the birth. Or, if they have other clients whose births are imminent, they may have to leave to attend them. Furthermore, if a midwife attends a birth without an assistant, then she isn't likely to be able to check blood pressure, take notes, set up birth equipment, etc AND provide the physical and informational support that a doula provides.

Photo Credit

There are some midwives who work in pairs, where one can take care of the medical side of things and the other can provide doula support. And there are many midwives who want to be there in a doula capacity for a long labor! But this is not true 100% of the time, and many women and partners feel they greatly benefit from having a doula at their home birth.

To read more about perspectives on doulas at home births, check out this post from Citizens for Midwifery: Doulas and Homebirth

What do you think about Doulas at Home Births?



  

Get Karen to Haiti: Help Ensure Safe Births in Times of Crisis

On the second anniversary of the Haiti earthquake, certified nurse midwife and instructor of nursing Karen Feltham is planning to return to Haiti and volunteer her services and provide training for local communities to help save women's lives.

Mothers and infants are especially vulnerable groups that are disproportionately affected by emergencies and the negative ramifications of disaster situations. It is well recognized that skilled birth attendants can help save lives.

 “The role of skilled birth attendants, in particular midwives and others with midwifery competencies, is widely acknowledged as being crucial to addressing maternal and newborn mortality and morbidity, and to promoting women’s and children’s health" (Maternal Health Task Force)

 Karen and other volunteers from Circle of Health International work with and train local maternity care workers, ensuring that birth attendants can recognize and respond to emergency health situations in maternity care.

Even before the devastating earthquake on January 12, 2010, Haiti had the highest maternal mortality rate in the Western hemisphere, with 607 women per 100,000 dying of complications related to childbearing.

Because Karen is donating her time and knowledge, COHI is fundraising to raise the cost of her travel to and within Haiti. This fundraiser is part of campaign to Get Karen There organized by Jeanette and Hillary at Birth Swell.

Help Get Karen There!

• For only $10, you can help send Karen to Haiti. And if you donate more, jewelry and other gifts are available as perks for donors who can offer $20, $35, $50 or more!
• Share the cause through via Facebook
  
• Promote the fundraiser via Twitter using the hashtag #GetKarenThere

Circle of Health Interational (COHI) works with women and communities to provide access to reproductive, maternal and newborn healthcare, specifically in times of crisis. COHI defines its target population as women in crisis, specifically partnering with women surviving conflict and disaster. I really like that COHI supports all aspects of public health, primary care, and ethnographic research initiatives! They are really committed to improving the quality, access and effectiveness of services to women and their families in these communities.

What's also really great about COHI is that "they work at the grassroots, partnering with the local community to identify their priorities and needs. They respect local cultures and values and focus on building skills in the community with local providers. This means their work is sustainable, long after COHI volunteers have moved to the next disaster," explain the Birth Swell gals. 

Karen's goals for her trip are to are to "run emergency obstetric care management drills, review core competencies, and always to reinforce and encourage the midwifery model of care." Important things that she will ensure are 1) a high standard of care and 2) training to recognize and respond to issues such as preeclampsia and shoulder dystocia.


If you'd like to learn more about Karen and her work, read this great interview with her on Our Bodies Our Blog!

Want to learn more about what COHI does, or how to volunteer? Check out their website or follow COHI on Facebook!

Weekend Movie: Waterbirth in a Hospital

Waterbirth in a hospital - It's possible!

Nursing in Public Advertisement

Happy New Year!

Take a look at this Nevada breastfeeding promotion video. It may be the first ad to focus on the legal right to nurse in public.