Looking for resources?

Ou online resources for pregnancy, birth and postpartum is not an exhaustive list of resources. Knowledge about birth is lost because we don’t see birth happen and society has moved away from believing that birth is a natural physiological process that in some cases needs medical support.

If you are pregnant, remember to be aware of how you are consuming information. Is the information making you more empowered and confident? Is it causing you to be more scared and fearful? Have a research buddy that you can bounce ideas and information with.

RESEARCH

midwife-led continuity of care

Why is this considered the gold standard? Why are mothers and babies happier and healthier when they birth through this model? When 1 in 3 women come out of birth with birth-related trauma we look to the best way to support mothers and babies now and in the future.

Midwife-led continuity of care models is when the same midwife supports a mum or birthing parent through pregnancy, birth and post-partum. The recent NSW Birth Trauma Inquiry Report heard this recommended by mothers who didnt have access to this care in their first birth but once they had access through a hospital system called MGP or a private practising homebirth midwife, they felt empowered and healed.

Why is support by a known midwife beneficial?

The Cochrane Review into Caseload Midwifery - Looking after the health and well-being of women and babies during pregnancy, birth and afterwards – are called ‘models of care’. One of the models is called ‘the midwife-led continuity model’ where the midwife is the lead health professional starting from the first appointment, up to and including the early days of parenting. This review suggests that women who received midwife-led continuity models of care were less likely to experience intervention and more likely to be satisfied with their care with at least comparable adverse outcomes for women or their infants than women who received other models of care.

The M@NGO Trial A randomised controlled trial of caseload midwifery care: M@NGO (Midwives @ New Group practice Options). Models of midwifery have proliferated in an attempt to offer women less fragmented hospital care. Caseload midwives manage the care of approximately 35-40 a year within a small Midwifery Group Practice. The trial compares the outcomes and costs of caseload midwifery care compared to standard or routine hospital care through a randomised controlled trial.

The Australian Birth Experience Study (BESt) is a national survey spanning 2016-2021, looking at the perspectives of Australian women and birthing individuals on their pregnancy, birth, and postnatal experiences. Key findings show that over 85% wanted different choices after their first birth, emphasising the importance of being better informed, self-advocacy, and continuity of care with a known midwife.

The preferred mode of birth was intervention-free, spontaneous, vaginal birth. However, barriers to accessing desired birth experiences were highlighted, and 33% of respondents reported traumatic birth experiences. One study limitation was the underrepresentation of First Nations and migrant individuals compared to the general population.

Planned homebirth

Homebirth NSW Research Directory - An excellent place to look for studies and research pieces providing evidence, statistics on homebirth.

Released in June 2020, the findings from the national survey - “Why do women choose homebirth in Australia?

The most recent research on homebirth (Reitsma et al., 2020) looked at 16 studies provided data from around 500,000 intended home births. The study compares the occurrence of birth interventions and maternal outcomes among low-risk women who begin labour intending to birth at home compared to women intending to birth in hospital.

Planned Birth at Home Australian College of Midwives Position Statement - The Australian College of Midwives (ACM) supports the choice of planned, midwife-attended birth at home as a safe option for women with uncomplicated pregnancies

optimal Hospital birth environments

Read ‘Birth Space, an evidence based guide to birth environment design’ for further information on why an optimal birth environment is important.

policy supporting normal birth

‘Maternity - Towards Normal Birth in NSW’ This policy provides direction to NSW maternity services regarding actions to increase the vaginal birth rate in NSW and decrease the caesarean section operation rate; to develop, implement and evaluate strategies to support women and to ensure that midwives and doctors have the knowledge and skills necessary to implement this policy.