Homebirths-the risks compared to hospitals?

[BrightShinySun]

Im only 8wks pg but pretty sure i want a hb this time. Dh is not keen as he thinks risks are increased. What things can go wrong and can they be dealt with as well as in hospital?

I really wanted a HB with my dd (14 mnth)
But allthe mw I saw were very negative. One even said why dont you just stay at home in the bath (As I wanted water birth) and come in to hospital when your about 7cm dilated. How the bloody hell am I supposed to know how dilated I am. In the end went to a different hospital as they had a pool. But couldnt use it as I had meconium in my waters.

However I have just been for my 20 week scan, and what a difference. The MW was very pushy for me to have a HB and I hadnt even mentioned it.
Have attitudes changed that much in the last 14 months?

My dh is also not keen on HB now due to few complications with dd, not to mention the mess and stitches fiasco. He is also making me feel like I shouldnt even consider it by saying would I forgive myself if anything went wrong that could have been prevented by being in hospital.

But its great to here all these positive comments, think I am gonna give it some serious thought now.

No1 ive read so much good stuff that i really cant imagine giving birth in hospital unless i have to. Sure i can talk dh round he just likes to know all the facts but either way what can he do i know when im in labour what i say goes!

I agree totally. Coped pretty well last time with tens machine and a bit of gas and air for stitches.
DH also likes to know and be prepared.
Will get one of these books thats recomended for him to have a look at.

a lot depends on how far you are from hospital.

here, we're very, very far from consultant-led hospital - ferry crossing and you'd need to be choppered if you ran into real trouble.

so of course, the risks are far greater than if you're just a few minutes away.

I also would love a hb and am 10 weeks with number 3 but dh is against the idea so if i can't change his mind i will have to keep quiet when labour starts until it is too late as hospital is 30 mins away.

hi there - no major risks for the mother but what about the baby - five minutes are an eternity if the baby is deprived of oxygen and while midwife should have an oxygen tank with her not good enough if baby needs intubation - i must admit it would have been much much more comfortable to deliver mine at home but didn't want to risk it for the baby - unfortunately babies can be born "flat" unexpectedly and by the time manage to bundle you and baby to hospital, however close you are can be too late to ensure no brain damage!!

also mrsa not such a big issue if everything goes well since in that case baby would be with mum all the time therefore very low risk (not much more than having midwife delivering him at home) if on the other hand he/she needs intubation/treatment and therefore at higher risk for mrsa that risk would still be there wherever he/she delivered since he would then need further treatment in hospital

The MW will bring a resuscitator with her, just in case. They also monitor you every few minutes and at the first sign of any concern they would act.

Had I of not had my two birthing partners that I had, I would have had a very different birth experience in hospital.

I would have liked a homebirth for DS1, but was scared out of it. It did, however, give me the confidence in my ability to give birth at home..

unfortunately mw not always carry resuscitator with them - know of a particular case where the midwife left all essential resuscitating equipment including the oxygen in the car becuase was too late and when baby came out flat there was a big to do until the oxygen was brought out of the car and ambulance called etc etc

garnettopaz - it's true that there are situations where being at home might prove a serious problem, as when a baby is born flat. My own baby needed resusitating at my homebirth. Luckily the midwives handled it fine. Incidentally, the first line of action with a baby who's slow to breath is usually to bag and mask the baby with room air - not oxygen.

However - the comparable rates of neonatal deaths for women birthing at home suggest that this risk is somehow balanced out in some way by the additional risks that come with birthing in hospital. If this wasn't the case you'd expect to see more neonatal deaths and morbidity at homebirths than in hospital. The research doesn't show this to be the case. The research seems to show that neonatal deaths are comparable to those of low risk mothers in hospital - even when comparing thousands of births, and that morbidity is lower in babies born at home.

Thanks for all your replies. Had a bit of a heated discussion with dh last night who is more against it than i realised. However its early days and he did seem suprised when i quoted some of the facts to him. Think it'll be a slow work in progress thing.

Brightshinysun - have you thought of getting Dh to talk to the midwife about his concerns? I know other people who've done this and it's made all the difference.

Statistically, a HB is safer than a hospital birth for "normal" pregnancies. This is the basic summary of the Birthday Trust report mentioned further down.

hi there - there should be no neonatal deaths at home births since only low risk pregnancies are chosen! there will of course always unfortunately be neonatal deaths but if a good job is done to make sure that only low risk pregnancies are delivered at home then surely any neonatal deaths at home in today's world is too high - bag and mask with room air - only if the baby is slow to breath but not if actually blue and not breathing - also if there is unexpected infection - which happens - urgent resuscitation is a must to maximise baby's chances

also how many doctors do you know that have actually delivered at home - doctors are aware of all the risks associated with hospital but as far as i'm aware the vast vast majority still choose to deliver in hospital

at the end of the day i think baby's safety is paramount over and above any discomfort to the mother - but perhaps that's just me

sabire, are you sure the stats are right about NL? I would have thought it was more like 60% homebirths, at least.
I had my second here 5mths ago, and I tell ya, it was a serious battle to get them to allow me to have mine in the hospital, so I at least had the option of pain relief if I wanted it.
Gas & Air is not available at all in this part of country I am!! So, it was either absolutely nothing what-so-ever - no thanks! Or, go down the medical route.

Still great though, and a good approach, and think it should be more like that in the UK. And you're right about the infant mortality rates, no worse.

(incidentally, when I asked about the possibility, or the option, of an epidural, I was told that if I wanted one I would have to be induced, and BOOK it, because, get this, the aneasthetists only worked 9-5 !!!! I could not help but laugh. Well, after a looooooooong moment of open-mouthed astonished silence. Because all babies come between the hours of 9-5 so we can all get home again for tea, right?) - needless to say, I did not have the epi!

I see mw today so will see what her thoughts are. Re the dr thing i read on a thread about drs tend to always be against hb because the only ones they ever see are the ones that have problems and as midwifery is not their field they see very little.

The thing is i would love a hb but was not traumatised by giving birth in hospital as someone mentioned i'd like to keep my options open,i may get to it and want to go in but would like to have the choice if i feel comfortable at home.

garnettopaz, by your reasoning there should be no neonatal deaths in hospital because it's oh so much safer. There are neonatal deaths for normal pregnancies in hospital births too.

There are a few MNers who have had babies die/be damaged by a hospital birth.

"at the end of the day i think baby's safety is paramount over and above any discomfort to the mother"

So you should choose a home birth since they are statistically safer.

hey never said that there will never be no neonatal deaths in hospital - as mentioned unfortunately neonatal deaths still happen - medicine has not advanced enough to save everyone - some "low risk" pregnancies are associated with unnoticed infections or other problems so unfortunately neonatal deaths will continue

ask you midwife whether she delivered her babies or her grandchildren/nephews at home? answer should be interesting

also if you're really low risk and no problems happen you tend to be discharged within two hours norwadays i.e. go to hospital in full labour, deliver and the go home again ASAP - that certainly happened with us - we left home at 6pm and was discharged soon after 9pm

btw good luck - enjoy your pregnancy and whatever you do decide make sure you (and not just everybody else) are very happy with your decision

I really hope my mw is pro hb! Im considered low risk and as ive said believe i would get more care at home than i did in hospital. Anything couldve happened to dd in the 3hrs we were left alone and no one wouldve noticed. At home that wouldnt happen.

The children of one of our GPs were home births. He's very encouraging about the idea, unlike the woman GP in the practice who had Caesarians and strongly discourages home births.

When you go for your booking in appointment (or your next routine appointment if you've already done that) talk to the midwives about the issue - see if they have any good leaflets/ideas for persuading husbands with doubts. They're generally in favour of home births and will want to help you.

I didn't have that problem as DH was born at home himself.

Oh, I had a lovely conversation with a former community midwife after a toddler group around the time DS2 was born. She was really pleased to hear I'd had a home birth. I asked her whether her own children had been born at home. "No, my husband's a consultant obstetrician and wouldn't hear of it", she replied.

That was the case with me garnet,had dd and discharged 3hrs later. However that was in the evening and if i have this one at 12 at night theyre not going to discharge me at 3am. I do not want to spend a night in hospital unless i absolutley have to.

See mw today for booking Hallgerda. Will see if shes got any good info i can read to dh!