Why do I read the daily mail???

[cupcake23]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/...n-doctor-free-births-putting-babies-risk.html

Horrible article, very vindictive towards midwives- I've seen more poor outcomes from hospital births (obstetricians popping in every 30mins, umming and ahhing and not making decision, leaving it for hours, finally rushing of to a crash section where a baby gets admitted to NICU) in my 5 years of midwifery I've only known of 2 poor outcomes from a home birth and 1 from a birthing unit.

Even the lady that was mentioned in the article of having lost her baby didn't die during labour or birth but approx 4 hours later, I don't know the whole story as the original article only stated that if she was born in an obstetric led unit she would have more than likely have survived, I'm assuming as there would have paediatric/ NICU cover (no delays in treatment). Im really sorry for the lady, no one should receive poor care and then suffer the loss of a beautiful child but how many articles are there from the daily mail about botched up hospital births?

I'm obviously going to take this personally as a midwife and a homebirther!

 

[Amygdala]

I'm still on the fence about a home birth. Leaning towards hospital probably largely due to scare stories like this one. I didn't read the article though, I don't see what good could come of it. In fact, I feel this way about the Daily Mail generally. It's a vindictive, misagonistic, often racist and altogether unhelpful rag. Try not to let it get to you!

 

[cupcake23]

I'm not against hospital births (had one with my 1st) and I work in a hospital but its just the stupidity of the article that's get me. Just need to stop reading the daily mail.

 

[beetroot]

One word... Bo****ks! I never read the DM and cant believe I just wasted my time reading that, and I only got 1/4 way through! Scaremongering sensationalism, not journalism!

I'm sorry for that woman's loss, but you only have to read some birth stories on this forum to know how horrendous some hospital births turn out. I had 2 home births and were amazing and safe. I remember being 36weeks pregnant with no2 and some woman in the gym changing room started telling me about her horrific first birth, in hospital, where her baby nearly died. She then started telling me I shouldn't have a homebirth because it's not safe! I politely told her that I'd already had one safe homebirth but would take everything into consideration!

Unfortunately, tragedies happen everyday. The DM is good for wrapping fish and chips and nothing else.

Don't take it to heart, the woman who wrote it probably hasn't even given bIirth!

 

[cupcake23]

One word... Bo****ks! I never read the DM and cant believe I just wasted my time reading that, and I only got 1/4 way through! Scaremongering sensationalism, not journalism!

I'm sorry for that woman's loss, but you only have to read some birth stories on this forum to know how horrendous some hospital births turn out. I had 2 home births and were amazing and safe. I remember being 36weeks pregnant with no2 and some woman in the gym changing room started telling me about her horrific first birth, in hospital, where her baby nearly died. She then started telling me I shouldn't have a homebirth because it's not safe! I politely told her that I'd already had one safe homebirth but would take everything into consideration!

Unfortunately, tragedies happen everyday. The DM is good for wrapping fish and chips and nothing else.

Don't take it to heart, the woman who wrote it probably hasn't even given bIirth!

Cracked me up completely agree

 

[aliss]

I'm sorry for that woman's loss, but you only have to read some birth stories on this forum to know how horrendous some hospital births turn out. I had 2 home births and were amazing and safe:

Totally agree with you.

Nobody cares about those of us who labored in hospitals and overzealous doctors caused more problems than prevented.

I had a home birth which ended in hospital transfer. I went because the signs existed that it was time to transfer |But there was nothing wrong before, so why would I want to go through the same crap as the 1st time!

 

[MindUtopia]

The Daily Mail always sucks (though doesn't mean I don't read it when I want a bit of juicy celebrity gossip!). But still, even their argument doesn't hold up. Having more babies delivered in hospitals by OBs doesn't make birth safer in general. Look at the statistics in the U.S. Yes, there are home births and some midwife-assisted births, but it's a small minority compared to the UK and other places. Nearly all U.S. babies are delivered by OBs in hospital settings, and yet they have the highest rates of mothers and babies dying in birth among all of the so-called 'developed nations' and even worse than some 'developing countries'. Pushing healthy mums into consultant-led care and hospital births obviously isn't the key to solving the problems of infant and maternal mortality. Because it hasn't worked elsewhere.

Plus, I said this on the FB group too. But I saw an interview with this mum on tv the other day. She said that her intuition told her for weeks that something was wrong with her baby and that she needed a hospital birth, yet she still opted for a MLU. I think this is one of the biggest problems affecting the way we birth in our 'modern' culture. We've taught women not to trust their instincts when it comes to their bodies and their babies, and instead to rely on machines and fancy diagnostic tests. When all those tests came back normal (I'm assuming they must have), she put her faith in them instead of listening to what her intuition was telling her and chose not to go to a hospital to birth, even when she said she felt it wasn't the safest choice for her. That's obviously horrible and a tragedy and it would be wherever it happened. But I think if our culture around birth empowered women more and gave them more permission to trust those instincts when they do arise, we might be able to prevent some of these awful things from happening.

 

[solitaire89]

To say I'm livid is an understatement. I will wait until I'm calm again before replying. Short version of where I'm at is that there is a complete misunderstanding of both birth AND the NHS.

 

[MrsSmartie]

I'm actually not going to read the link! But I'm sure I get the drift. As a midwife and homebirth hopeful myself it makes me sad that women have things like this to make them feel that birth is something to be fearful of. And also that midwives are not capable of good care. Very sad. I don't read the DM ever, it's total bile. xx

 

[Feronia]

I wish I didn't waste my time reading that monstrosity of so-called "journalism." I especially love the random statistics pulled out of thin air without any citations, as well as the frequent comparisons to the "Dark Ages." Brilliant.

 

[Toms Mummy]

Is that journalist the work experience girl? (actually, that's offensive to work experience folk!)... I thought journalism was about having a conservative view and keeping opinions to yourself? She needs to be fired, silly cow for rubbish writing and not getting all of the facts on how the baby died and the stats compared to hosp births!

 

[MikaylasMummy]

I didn't read,but as someone who had a pretty normal pregnancy except for two unexplained bleeds I would have been healthy enough for a home birth.had I done so,there's a fair chance my 9 pound 4 baby may have been stuck forever,and I would have bled to death.i lost two liters of blood before the BARAGE of doctors and midwives could stop it.i don't think one midwife would have had a hope.scares me to no end thinking that.i had no reason to think that would happen so for that reason I'm against home birth.you just never know

 

[cupcake23]

I'm quite proud of myself as I've not read the the crappy mail since that article

I forgot midwives are witches and need to be burnt at the stake well maybe some do.... but that's a whole other thread

 

[cupcake23]

I didn't read,but as someone who had a pretty normal pregnancy except for two unexplained bleeds I would have been healthy enough for a home birth.had I done so,there's a fair chance my 9 pound 4 baby may have been stuck forever,and I would have bled to death.i lost two liters of blood before the BARAGE of doctors and midwives could stop it.i don't think one midwife would have had a hope.scares me to no end thinking that.i had no reason to think that would happen so for that reason I'm against home birth.you just never know

The article insinuates that midwives alone are unable to cope with pregnancy and birth- it throws statistics that have no references

Of course I completely understand the role of an obstetrician however considering the majority of care is given by midwives (UK) the article sidelines our role and scaremongers women into believing obstetric led care is the gold standard.

"Dr Mary Steen, in her book on home birth, points out that a medicalised birth is not necessarily an easier option for women who are worried about the risks. ‘There will always be an element of uncertainty around giving birth at home but being in a hospital setting does not prevent this either. Absolute safety cannot be guaranteed in any birth environment. However, good preparation and planning will help to minimise the risks associated with birth’ (Steen, 2012).

You obviously have your reason for being against home birth. I believe a women deserves the right to make an informed decision regarding her birthing options and not have to read drivel from the mail.

 

[MikaylasMummy]

I understand that position.my only issue is that you can make the informed choice on a home birth given that it is unlikely things will go wrong.but they can without warning and without prior knowledge and you just never know if you will be that exception

 

[subaru555]

"Why are grown-up, educated, intelligent, able women — who grasp the finest technological advances of our times — buying into unenlightened nonsense when it comes to the most important thing they will ever do as a woman?"

What.the.fuck.

 

[subaru555]

"In a good hospital, by contrast, you unpack your choices with your nightgown. Need more pain relief? Ask for it. You find, perhaps to your own surprise, that you’re coping? Tell them thanks, but you won’t have the epidural after all.
You feel something is wrong? Demand to see a doctor, NOW! Or you feel your midwife is providing all you need? Wave the doctor bye-bye. "

There are "Good" hospitals?? I guess I was just unlucky then eh?

Unpack your nightgown? Where? What...squashed into a flimsy little shallow cupboard which you wouldn't want your clothes to touch the insides of at risk of infection?

Ok so I'll ask for more pain relief...oh but their too busy right now. An hour and a half later it comes...woop-de-doo after another hour and 4 attempts they still couldn't get the epi to work so was deemed useless and couldn't be used!

Something is wrong and baby is stuck. Consultant called but he's too busy, of course. Oh well it's left to the midwives to do the best they can and try to save my sons life, which they did. Just. I never got a chance to say hello never mind bye-bye!

This is absolutely ridiculous.

Yeah. Thanks NHS for the wonderfully traumatising experience. I'm so glad you ruined my whole birth and labour with your understaffing and inability to meet basic needs like a drink of water.

 

[chattyB]

An absolutely shocking piece of journalism. Pretty much on par with the usual tosh that the Daily Fail turf out. I'm putting money on the "journalist" being a sacked GCSE English exam marker

Scare tactics from an uneducated birth wannabe expert ... no doubt they'll be slagging off hospital births next week.

 

[fionar]

Didn't read it, I'll just get too angry. So many problems with the birth industrial complex... and journalists who promote that kind of backwards thinking make me feel all stabby.

 

[NaturalMomma]

I didn't read the article, but I'm sure it's just like any other anti-midwife/homebirth piece. I'm getting annoyed with all the mislead comments about Midwifery education in general. We DO have colleges for Midwives, and more keep popping up every single year, many are even run by OBs who believe in natural/physiology birth!

I'm also sick and tired of hearing just the bad stories. For every bad story there are hundreds of good stories, but of course, no one wants to read about the uncomplicated pregnancy and homebirth.

I understand that position.my only issue is that you can make the informed choice on a home birth given that it is unlikely things will go wrong.but they can without warning and without prior knowledge and you just never know if you will be that exception

Actually almost every single complication that can happen in birth will happen over time, meaning you generally have enough time to get to the hospital in a transfer. On the rare exception the MW or whoever else doesn't notice a complication arising, but those are not the norm, and can happen with a OB in a hospital too. Also many people don't understand that the c-section room is not set up all the time. Everything has to be put away or it wouldn't be kept sterile. Therefor when a woman gets rushed into the c-section room and it seems like they get to work right away and therefor everyone assumes that the complication happened just like that, well they knew about it beforehand and had set up the c-section room, which typically takes 30 minutes and then told the woman that she needed a c-section due to x complication.