Homebirth

For further information, contact Melissa Maimann at Essential Birth Consulting or phone 0400 418 448.

The safety of home birth

The most up-to-date scientific research supports the safety of homebirth for healthy women whose pregnancies are low-risk, and who are attended by a qualified midwife.

Why is Home Birth so Very Attractive?

Receive care from the same caring, kind, understanding midwife from pregnancy right through until your baby is 6 weeks old

Less use of pain medication as natural methods are well used to maintain comfort. Only 3% women who birth with this service use an epidural for labour.

Less likely to need an episiotomy or to tear. Of the women who birth with this service, 0% have an episiotomy, 69% have no tears at all and 71% have no stitches after their birth.

Lower chance of needing a caesarean. Only 5% of the women who use this service have a caesarean.

Highest chance of a normal birth, without the use of forceps, vacuum or caesarean. 90% women who birth with this service have a normal birth. Only 5% have a vacuum, and none have had forceps. 92% women birthing their first baby will go on to have a normal birth.

Being in very safe, private, comfortable and familiar surroundings

Women have the choice and control of who is present at the birth

No separation from partner or family such as other children, or the baby

Much less risk of serious infection in your own surroundings

Women have the complete freedom to choose their birthing positions

Babies have uninterrupted bonding with their mother

Increased chance of success with breastfeeding

Receive personalised and convenient pregnancy and postnatal care in your own home

More and more women all over the world are now making the choice to birth at home.

Imagine: waking up in the morning on the day you will birth your baby. You feel alive, rested … content in the comfort and familiarity of your own home. As the day moves along, you begin to feel the niggle of labour starting, bringing with it the most excitement and anticipation you have ever experienced. You’re looking forward to whatever this amazing experience may bring, because you have prepared your body and your mind, and you have arranged the support of a wonderful midwife who is going to assist you to birth in your own home … in your own way.

Upon birthing your beautiful baby, you have an overwhelming sense of achievement and accomplishment. You slide in to your own cosy bed with your partner and this breath-taking tiny little treasure you have just brought into the world.

You are free to invite anybody you want to be present at your homebirth.

It’s a sure way to have a water birth. Don’t let hospital staffing arrangements, bath availability and hospital policies affect your ability to birth in water! Choose homebirth and waterbirth is a guaranteed option.

There are no visiting hours.

At home, you can labour in a safe, familiar and comforting environment.

My statistics:

Normal birth (no forceps, vacuum or caesarean): 89%
Caesarean 5%
Vacuum 5%
Forceps 0%
Episiotomy 0%
Intact perineum (no tears) 69%; 71% women have no stitches at all after their baby is born
82% women labour without medical forms of pain relief and only 3% women use an epidural for labour
92% women having their first babies have a normal birth
My VBAC rate is 88%
6% women are induced

For most women, home birth is a safe, considered and responsible decision. Homebirth is certainly possible for women who:

• Are having their first babies
• Have had a previous traumatic birth and prefer to minimise the risk of it happening again
• Had a fast birth last time and would prefer to stay at home and have a midwife come to them, instead of the slightest chance of birthing by the roadside
• Prefer a more natural, relaxed, comfortable, stress-free experience
• Are healthy and actively work towards health and wellbeing

What if Something Goes “Wrong” at Home?

This is actually quite rare, however the qualified midwife is very competent and capable in dealing with minor and moderate issues. If a severe issue arose, she would supervise transfer to hospital and stay with the woman to continue care and support to ensure a satisfactory experience and outcome for the woman and her baby.

Midwives who birth with women at home are educated and experienced to assess the wellbeing of mother and baby throughout pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, birth and the postnatal / neonatal period. The College of Midwives Guidelines for Referral and Consultation are used to support clinical decision-making in consultation with the Client.

Choosing to birth at home does not mean saying goodbye to hospital, it simply extends your options. If the hospital is needed at any stage, there is ready access to their services.

Pregnancy consultations will teach you:

What supplies and equipment you’ll need in advance, so that you’ll be safe, comfortable and extremely well prepared.

How to get your home ready for the big day.

How to get the support and encouragement you need from your partner and family so that your pregnancy and birth will be stress-free.

How to deal with negative reactions you may get from close family and friends.

What exactly will happen during the birth when you are in your own home (it will be VERY different to what you may have experienced in a hospital).

What to do with the placenta once it’s been born.

What will happen if any complications arise, what could go wrong and how will your midwife be prepared for this.

Strategies you can use to ensure you are in peak condition, physically, mentally and emotionally for natural birth.

Secret hints and tips to avoid an episiotomy or tear.

What to expect with pregnancy and postnatal care.

What you need to ask your midwife BEFORE you make a booking.

The specific equipment your midwife will have access to.

The process if your require a transfer to hospital.

What happens when you go into labour?

Many women have signs that their body is getting ready for labour well before it actually starts. Most women keep in touch with me by phone and I will provide reassurance or visit at home. Eventually, we decide that labour is progressing well and it is best for me to be with the woman at home. Usually the woman has chosen a birth place in her home and this area is prepared in advance. For example, a birth pool might be set up and homebirth supplies will be available in the birth room.

What happens after the birth?

I stay with the family for at least 2 hours, observing the woman and her baby and assisting as needed. I do not leave until we are confident that the woman and her baby are well, and breastfeeding has started. The next consultation is within the next 24 hours and I am available by phone in between.

If you are a healthy woman desiring a normal birth, home is the best place to be!

The most up-to-date scientific research supports the safety of homebirth for healthy, low risk women who are attended by a qualified midwife.

Several recent studies including two from Canada and one from the Netherlands have confirmed that home birth is at least as safe as hospital birth for low-risk, healthy women who are attended by professional and qualified midwives. Women who birth at home also experience fewer interventions in their labour.

What Can We Expect to pay for a Home Birth?

Please contact me to discuss fees for your care or call 0400 418 448. Our fees are structured so that your care with us is both affordable and predictable. We can confidently say that you can birth your baby with Melissa as your midwife, in full knowledge that your personal out-of-pocket payments will be kept to the minimum.

If you fee shop around, it can be hard to compare one midwife’s fees with another. You need to ask whether the midwife will be a Medicare-eligible midwife and examine what her service includes.

If you compare, you will be delighted with our fees. Please phone us on 0400 418 448 to arrange a free, no-obligation appointment.

At the first appointment, Melissa will explain the fees and possible payment plans in detail. We offer three levels of service for birth support and three levels of service for midwifery care. You can financially plan for your care. We are very sensitive to all the financial pressures that are present at this stage of your life. Please advise us if you have any special personal financial considerations. This is so we can work out a payment plan or even a special fee consideration.

Our goal is for you to have an enjoyable pregnancy and birth experience and for financial pressures to not be a distraction from this. Financial constraints should not prevent you from allowing us to help you achieve an optimal experience and outcome.

The service includes:

Comprehensive pregnancy and postnatal care for 6 weeks
Home consultations available
Access to a library of books and DVDs
Birth debriefing
Birth preparation and planning
Comprehensive childbirth education
Labour and birth at home or in hospital
Breastfeeding support and advice
Waterbirth
Subscription
Calmbirth ® course
Midwife’s attendance at related hospital and doctor’s consultations
Additional or extended consultations
Phone support
Access to a back-up midwife

Free First Appointment

If you would like to book a free first appointment with us, please call on 0400 418 448. There will be no charge for this appointment and it is obligation-free.

This visit would be so you can meet us and we can discuss fees and other considerations face-to-face. We can work out a fee payment plan and any other special fee considerations. We can also discuss the different levels of service so that you can choose the one that best suits your needs and budget.

Being a free appointment, we will not be in a position to provide midwifery advice, nor will this appointment provide for you to ‘interview’ Melissa. We encourage you to make an appointment for an initial consultation to help you to decide if Melissa’s philosophy, experience and care will best meet your needs.

Many families will skip straight to the initial consultation – rather than attending a first appointment – as the initial consultation provides for families to ‘interview’ Melissa and for Melissa to provide midwifery assessment and advice. An initial consultation is attended prior to engaging our services.

Initial Consultation

Following the first appointment, most families will book an initial consultation. This consultation provides an opportunity for us to meet each other again and discuss in detail the family’s needs for pregnancy and birth. Many women have questions they would like to ask Melissa, and likewise Melissa will have questions she would like to ask you. This is so that Melissa can be sure of her ability to meet your needs throughout your pregnancy and birth. A consultation fee applies for the initial consultation and this fee is deducted from the full fee when you engage our midwifery service.

For further information about homebirth services, please visit my website. Information about booking a homebirth can be found here.  Or simply call me on 0400 418 448.

Other services include:

Pre-conception care
Pregnancy and Birth Options
VBAC Preparation
Miscarriage and Pregnancy Termination Support
Childbirth Education
Nutrition and Exercise
Telephone and E-mail Consultations
Birth Plans
Birth Advocacy
Second opinions
Birth Trauma Debriefing

Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448