Community Midwifes not supporting my home birth

[BabiesEverywhere]

I feel like screaming they won't stop looking for problems. Up to now I have played ball and been to hospital for countless blood tests etc and I am sick of them.

I refused an referal for a growth scan (I don't care if I have a big baby) I was told I had to wait in today to speak to the team leader. My DH took the day off work and she never turned up !!!

Eventually got though to her at 4pm, she said she was going to ring tonight and rearrange for the weekend !!! Thanks a lot, after DH has wasted a holiday day for nothing and I have been stressed waiting for her to turn up

Had a brief chat on the phone and I explained that I am unconcerned by the size of my baby and if there was no medical reason I am happy to stand by not going for loads of growth scans.

But what if you were told you had a 11lb baby, I replied I would still stay at home and have a 'trial of labour' and hope that the scan was out in my favour (i.e. They can be out a pound or more)

She mentioned GD and GTT test, I explained no sugar in wee so was there a need for further testing. She suggested I had GD in last pregnancy and I explained I had done a GTT test and passed with flying colours, I just grow large babies (8 lbs 12 ozs last one)

So then she started going on about how she didn't want my baby to die, due to shoulder problems and that they don't carry the right kit to resuss babies. (WTF, I wonder what her boss would think of that statement)

That she didn't care if I hated her for transferring me. !?! (Bearing in mind this is 2 months before my due date) and on zero evidence, she has already decided that she intents on transferring me to hospital

I am so damm angry, upset and feel so let down

All midwives attending homebirths should carry basic resucitation equipment and be trained to use it.

I'm sure this is in the NICE guidelines somewhere.

Tell the Head of Midwifery that you will be contacting the local paper to complain that local midwives are being sent out o homebirths without proper equipment or training. Bet that'll light a fire under her arse!

What has size got to do with it??
I had my second child in hospital, but in the pool with no intervention at all (no pain relief even), and he was 10lb3. No probs at all.

Just read merry's birth story of her 11lb11 baby - wow!
Makes me wonder if mine did actually have shoulder dystocia, but there was no fuss about it: it did take two pushes to get his head out, and then they got to me to change positions onto my side (which I think I'd read in Ina May was the thing to do when they get a bit stuck), another push for his shoulders and another for his tummy!!! But there was no suggestion this was problematic, and it may just have been that he was quite big.

Babies, I'm not sure a 9lb baby is really that big anymore. Perhaps you should ask what difference it makes?
I have a consultant lead pregnancy and so would emplore you to seek the guidance of one as a)they are treated like Gods and b)they rarely make uninformed recommendations.
How many home births do your MWs do?
Where I live they are quite common place and so MWs are very confident but even so they are still under staffed and so it's not always possible.

implore

just been catching up a bit and babies I think i didn't express myself very clearly. I wasn't saying to you 'why don't you have the GTT' rather that's what was said to me. I refused it for exactly the same reasons as yourself. It is horribly stressful isn't it? I do hope you get the birth you want.

being understaffed is not a reason for no homebirth, the hospital have different midwives for community and can get in bank staff if necessary. AIMS have some great advice about how to deal with a situation where you are told you have to come into hospital when you are booked for home birth.

well done babieseverywhere. hope thigns go a bit better from now on

posie consultants being 'treated like gods' is part of the problem, if you treat someone like a god,they start to believe they are infallible - they are not, they are human beings just like the rest of us, with egos and prejudices, and preferred ways of doing things, whatever the evidence- look at the RCOG guidelines and compare with what people are told by these 'Gods'- many have difficulty following the guidance of their own governing body!

and they are not known as advocates of homebirht, on the whole!

No, what I meant by that is that their opinions are listened to by other memebers of the medical community and they don't over react. EG, when I visited the cons on Wednesday to discuss my 4th caesarean she was wonderful, no about it being my 4th and even asked whether I would have any more. MWs have occasionally insisted that I MUST not have any more.
jam... I will concede that that wasn't very clear.

of course the consultant was happy with doing a 4th C/S posie -it's what they are good at and what they are for,if you wanted a homebirth,you'd ask a midwife,they have different areas of expertise - if you'd gone asking for a VBA3C you would have got a different reception, despite it not being as risky in relative terms as a 4th C/S, you've hopefully informed yourself of the risk and are taking the risk you are familiar and comfortable with. Babies on the other hand is perfectly comfortable with the risks of homebirth, but is being met with scaremongering and misinformation from those who are supposed to be the guardians of normal birth,even though she is perfectly intelligent and informed

Jamila, perhaps you and I have had different experiences of consulants, I have seen many about the last three pregnancies and not all are happy clappy about caesareans. The last was very about me having another and dismissed this totally. The VBAC3 is much more risky than a fourth c-section, uterine rupture is far more likely and as I am likely to have placenta growing into my scar VBAC is not at all an option (sorry I do loathe the VBAC brigade, it's the bain of my choice). If we want free medical cover and help then I do think we should be a little less middle class and self righteous and do what is advised. Noone is asking the OP to go through risky tests, just to have a couple of scans. What's the big deal? When you are asking medical professionals to enter into a situation which is more out of their control then jump through the required hoops, as long as there's no risk to you or your baby.

posie -I'm not sure why you insist on making this into an argument -we haven't disrespected your informed choice, please don't disrespect the OP's. I could go into a huge explanation of why the OP's decision is a valid one, just as i could go into an explanation of why yours is equally valid and discuss the roles of the different lead professionals in the realm of birth - midwives are lead professionals as well.
The saying 'My body , My baby, My birth' serves well here -despite what is sometimes thought , it's a call to women to question everything, to find out the evidence and to make their own choice, based on their own personal risk assessment - the idea being that you own your birth and everything arising from it, good or bad and go into it with your eyes open

well, i am willing to stand up and be counted as one of the loathed VBAC brigade

if i said i loathed pro elective c.s mothers, then i would be rightly, vilified

the OP has said that the tests she has been offered has the capacity to be wildly inaccurate, and at best, confirm what she already knows, that her baby is larger than average..

why shoudl she consent, when she has made it clear she understands the tests and has made an informed decision to decline it

we can decline any or all medical tests , if we are aware of the repercussions, positive and negative

yes there are risks to a VBA3C. and to multiple c.s including scar adhesion, uncontrollable bleeding, higher maternal and infant mortality and higher risk of hysterectomy.

i am sure you ahve made an informed choice to have your c.s, just as the OP is making an informed choice to have a homebirth

there have been times when i have challenged OPs who have been doing something that is IMP and IME too risky. this is not one of those times, i am not someone who is pro VBAC or pro choice at any any cost...

But the OP is asking the medics to do something which is more of an uncontrollable outcome than a planned procedure (not saying she should have a planned procedure at all) and they have requested she has some tests before saing yes to a homebirth, why is that too much to ask? If it is too much then there will be channels to proceed through.
VBAC in the against choice brigade as opposed to those who choose VBAC.
I'm not making an argument I just disagree with the notion that people 'can do what they want' and still enlist the help of mdeics when it suits them.

The definition of 'macrosomic' baby is over 4.5 kg isn't it?

Why are they fussing about a first baby of 8lbs 12oz ffs?

i cannot agree that people should only have the birth they want when they bow to the medics without question, that is absolutely wrong and would be intolerable IMO

the test will prove nothing, except that the baby might be bigger than average, which the OP knows.

a planned homebirht is as safe as a planned hospital birth. a planned c.s has risks. all births have risks. risks are not negated by having a planned surgical procedure.

accepting medical advice on face value, without question, esepcially in birth, where different Obs or MWs have their own agendas, does not always help the woman.

if she has the tests , then from the sounds of it, they will use the results as a way to put her off homebirth even more. their own anti homebirth agenda is being used as a stick to beat the OP and that is wrong.

she can make an informed decision to birth at home, knowing she is having a bigger baby, and make sure that she knows the best positions to open up her pelvis to its full capacity etc...

I'LL SPELL THIS OUT SHALL I?
there are protocols for deciding who should be offered a GTT
Babies has no risk factors and if she were to present for a GTT at clinic, they would send her back home again,having starved for nothing.Therefore she is being lied to - if she had not aquainted herself with the guideline she might have thought like you, but she has and is fully aware of the fact that her carers are making it up as they go along. She posted because she was hacked off and wanted support from women who have jumped through the same hoops - not to be hijacked by someone who has no idea what she is talking about
sorry to be so blunt, but if debate is asked for -by all means go for it, don't try to turn someone venting her frustration to likeminded people into a pissing contest

she has also been lied to re the lack of kit to recuss babies.

how can she possibly trust them to be truthful with other aspects of her care?

questioning medics in these circumstances should be encouraged, not bowed to

"If it is too much then there will be channels to proceed through" like I said if this is all bogus and not protocol then the OP has options... there I spelt it out too!

jamila, whoa there I then read that you thought I was asking for a pissing contest, as in one involving urine not a swear word that could be substituted with 'bloody', . You're right of course I have a) not read that this was in 'childbirth' and b) thought that this was a debate.
If the MW is not following protocol then she should be ignored and senior MWs should be sought.

I'm sorry you're have these difficulties. I have no idea whether the medics fears are justified in any way or not, but I do think the fact that for whatever reason the midwives don't feel confident to delivery you for a home birth is an issue. One of the most important aspects of a good delivery is that the midwife feels confident, and that the mother has confidence in her. You may be able to "force" them to allow a home birth, but I do wonder what your experience would be, and if there lack of confidence would mean they would refer early before giving you a fair chance. I'm not saying this is right - just what it may be in practice. I remember being told I could deliver anywhere in the country - is it the same for home births, and could you maybe go to a friend or relative in a different HA? Not ideal I know.

Please don't consider freebirthing. I feel very strongly about this growing trend having worked in developing countries where unattended deliveries are the norm. Maternal deaths are relatively rare, but neonatal deaths are 10-15 times more frequent. This has little to do with poverty etc. There are also many children who are disabled for life as a result of unattended deliveries. The NHS is by no means ideal, but it is certainly much safer than this.

I have already spoken to the local chair of the MSLC, she is a friend and on Mumsnet but I won't 'out' her I will be sending them a letter either now or after my birth, their next meeting is after my due date.

I spoke to AIMS this morning and when I mentioned my town, she said they hear about a lot of problems in our area. Reflected in an 1.8% homebirth rate rather than the average (?) 11% rate.

She said to write to the CHief Excutive if I want anything done in time and sent it recorded delivery, so it doesn't get 'lost'

So I am currently writing a nasty ranting letter, which will be filter by my more reasonable DH and my lovely doula before being posted hopefully tomorrow or Monday by the latest.

Sod the bastards.

there should be more than one midwife available on community for hjomebirth, if the OP is having difficulties, then the supervisor of MWs can intervene.

it is not about forcing a midwife to allow a hoembirth, but that the OP can excercise her legal right to have her baby born in a place of her choosing.

if the homebirth midwives are not comfortable/ trained or equipped adequately, it is incumbent on the head of midwifery and risk assessors to ensure that the training needs are dealt with and the equipment needs dealt with, rather than depriving women of their choice to give birth at home.

there should be more than one midwife available on community for homebirth, if the OP is having difficulties, then the supervisor of MWs can intervene.

it is not about forcing a midwife to allow a hoembirth, but that the OP can excercise her legal right to have her baby born in a place of her choosing.

if the homebirth midwives are not comfortable/ trained or equipped adequately, it is incumbent on the head of midwifery and risk assessors to ensure that the training needs are dealt with and the equipment needs dealt with, rather than depriving women of their choice to give birth at home.