Posted by Melissa Maimann on May 19, 2010 in
Birth Interested in home birth, hospital birth or private midwifery care? Questions or comments? Email Melissa Maimann or call 0400 418 448.
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Up to a third of Australians still believe mothers should not breastfeed babies in public, while a third think a baby should stop breastfeeding within six months.
Despite 65 per cent of people saying breastfed babies had a better chance of surviving beyond a year old … only 29 per cent “strongly agree” that women should be encouraged do so in public.
… young adults … were the least supportive of public breastfeeding.
… “Part of the issue why young mothers wean their babies too early is societal pressure …”
… The World Health Organisation recommends breastfeeding exclusively for a baby’s first six months, continuing for up to two years …
… breastfed babies have lower risks of cot death and a decreased likelihood of developing diabetes or becoming obese.
“While nearly 90 per cent of Australian women initiate breastfeeding, one per cent of Australian children are breastfed for the minimum duration recommended by the WHO,” Dr James says.
“Australia needs a paradigm shift, and it has to start in our schools with education that normalises breastfeeding …”
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: Breastfeeding
Posted by Melissa Maimann on May 9, 2010 in
Birth Interested in home birth, hospital birth or private midwifery care? Questions or comments? Email Melissa Maimann or call 0400 418 448.
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Babies are being handed to the wrong mothers who are unknowingly breastfeeding another woman’s child, with a string of dangerous hospital blunders in New South Wales exposing both mums and newborns to disease.
In one shocking case uncovered in an investigation … a newborn baby had to have its stomach pumped after being given month-old breastmilk from a woman who was not the child’s mother.
At least 26 cases where babies have been wrongly identified have occurred in NSW public maternity wards in the past three years. Staff shortages and the failure by some midwives to check identification tags have been blamed for the errors.
After a year-long investigation, documents released under Freedom of Information reveal the extent of the bungles.
One of the most serious cases was at Blacktown Hospital … with a baby given unnecessary medication because of incorrect identification tags.
In another incident, a 10-hour-old baby girl was given to the wrong mother to be breastfed at Westmead Hospital … because staff did not check the identification tags properly.
At least half of the errors … occurred in the Sydney South West Area Health Service …
It is the same health service which tried to hide its mistakes by refusing to release the documents until ordered by the Ombudsman.
Documents released by the hospitals reveal mothers have been left distraught after being told,or discovering themselves, the child they were breastfeeding was not theirs.
… NSW Health’s breast-milk safe management policy advises staff to double-check ID tags on the baby’s ankles and wrists against the mother. Expressed milk should be cross checked with the mother and ideally stored in a fridge in her room …
These problems can be avoided by birthing at home. If a woman births in hospital, it is important to avoid separation from the baby, even if she is tired. Midwives typically care for 8-15 women on afternoon and night shifts and this can obviously impact patient care. It does not excuse the issue, but with a huge shortage of midwives, keeping your new baby with you can help minimise your chances of being handed someone else’s baby, or having your baby handed to another mother.
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: Babies, Breastfeeding, hospital birth, Public and private hospitals
Posted by Melissa Maimann on Apr 15, 2010 in
Birth,
Caesarean,
Home birth,
Midwifery,
Normal Birth,
Obstetrics Interested in home birth, hospital birth or private midwifery care? Questions or comments? Email Melissa Maimann or call 0400 418 448.
home birth: how messy is it
Homebirth generally isn’t messy. Many women labour and birth in a birth pool and any bodily fluids are easily contained. Towels and plastic sheeting come in handy and midwives are very good at leaving the house as it was found. Plastic bags collect any garbage, the placenta is collected in a bowl or container, and sheets and towels can be washed.
midwives home birth still legal
Yes, it’s still legal and it will remain legal after July 2010.
how many hours a day do you spend breastfeeding
Breastfeeding can take a long time! Some women spend about 50% to 2/3 their time feeding, especially if it’s a newborn baby. Newborns can healthily feed every couple of hours for an hour at a time. This feeding pattern is helpful to encouraging the mother’s milk supple, allowing bonding to occur, help the baby’s palate and jaw muscles to form well and assist the baby’s digestion.
i would like a private midwife but im giving birth at a public hospital
Women may take private midwives with them to pubic hospitals. Women may book into hospital, have all their pregnancy care with their private midwife, birth in hospital with their midwife and hospital staff, and then return home to continue care with their private midwife.
in home birth, what happens if emergency c-section is needed?
In homebirth, midwives are always on the look out for any signs of things not going well in the pregnancy or labour. This allows for women to be seen by doctors or transferred to hospital before true emergencies occur. Most “emergency” caesareans are not in fact emergencies in that they are life and death situations. They most commonly occur because a labour is not progressing and the baby will not come out any other way. However, in the event that a caesarean is needed, the midwife and woman simply transfer to hospital and are offered the best obstetric and midwifery care possible in the circumstances. planning a homebirth does not commit the woman to birthing at home if circumstances make it that hospital would be safer.
what’s the difference between a midwife and obstetrician
Obstetricians are doctors who have completed a degree in medicine and a degree in surgery. They then complete several years of internship and residency before going back to specialise in obstetrics. An obstetrician is a highly trained and educated doctor who specialises in the care of pregnant and birthing women, mostly dealing with complications. Obstetrics is a surgical specialty.
Midwives are qualified to care for women throughout pregnancy, birth and postnatal. They care for healthy women who are experiencing normal pregnancies. If a woman’s condition warrants consultation with an obstetrician, this can be arranged without fuss. Midwifery care generally affords women lengthier consultations, more personalised care and a greater satisfaction with the birth experience. Women who
are attended by midwives are more likely to experience a normal birth, to breastfeed and to receive fewer interventions in their pregnancy and labour such as induction, epidural and episiotomy.
water birth private hospital
Good luck! Private hospitals (in Sydney at least) do not allow for water births. If anyone knows of a private hospital that allows waterbirths, please let me know! Nabmour allows waterbirths but it is not in Sydney.
how to avoid hospital birth
Well, if you don’t go to hospital, you can avoid a hospital birth. I guess the question is – how can you prepare well for a homebirth so that you minimise your chances of needing to go to hospital? I think an excellent approach is to book with a midwife and explain that you would really like her to help you to birth at home.
how to choose a midwife
See here.
limitations of using a private obstetrician for maternity care pregnancy
1. You’re more likely to have intervention in your pregnancy and labour
2. Your obstetrician is likely to work with other obstetricians, sharing on-call over the weekend. So it’s possible that your obstetrician will not be available to you when you’re in labour.
3. You will be attended by hospital midwives in labour and postnatally who you may not have met.
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: Birth choices, Breastfeeding, Caesarean, continuity of care, Epidural, Home birth, hospital birth, intervention, Normal Birth, Obstetrics, Public and private hospitals
Posted by Melissa Maimann on Mar 7, 2010 in
Birth Interested in home birth, hospital birth or private midwifery care? Questions or comments? Email Melissa Maimann or call 0400 418 448.
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The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) today released a new recommendation that all women who are pregnant, breast-feeding or considering pregnancy take an iodine supplement of 150 micrograms each day.
… “Women wanting to conceive, or who are already pregnant or breast-feeding, need a minimum of 250 micrograms of iodine each day for the baby’s brain and nervous system development,” …
“Australians now get more iodine in their diets following the mandatory fortification of bread last October, though it is still appropriate for women to supplement their diet with an additional 150 micrograms of iodine every day,” he said.
… “The body does not store iodine, so amounts taken in excess of the body’s requirements will simply be excreted by the kidneys.”
People with a known iodine deficiency, or who are concerned they may not be getting enough iodine, should consult their healthcare professional.
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: birth, Breastfeeding, Nutrition, Preconception care
Interested in home birth, hospital birth or private midwifery care? Questions or comments? Email Melissa Maimann or call 0400 418 448.
informed consent and childbirth
Every woman who is competent to consent, has the right to refuse any or all professional care. Informed consent must be obtained prior to any procedure being performed.
how to minimise labour intervention in a hospital?
The best way to minimise intervention in a hospital is to be as well informed as you can possible be about all things related to pregnancy, labour, birth, breastfeeding and babies. Read widely, attend independent childbirth education classes and consider employing a private midwife to be with you throughout your labour. She can help you to decide if the proposed interventions are necessary in your situation, she can support you emotionally, mentally and physically and she can aso help to ensure that your birth plan is respected without a fuss.
Do any independent midwives in Sydney offer prenatal care for women who are planning to freebirth?
Yes! This service enables women to access antenatal care from a midwife without the midwife attending the birth. Postnatal care is available if needed.
Do you think there are advantages to continuous monitoring for low-risk women
In a word, no. Intermittent auscultation is the method of choice. Continuous monitoring will increase the chance of a caesarean with no benefit to the mother or baby.
How much is a private midwife
Prices range from $3000 – $6000. Melissa Maimann offers for her clients to pay by the hour, making the service one of the cheapest.
What is a good caesarean rate?
The World Health Organisation recommends that no more than 15% births need to be caesareans. The WHO argues that when caesarean rates exceed 15%, the risks to the mother and baby increase on the whole. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a hospital with a caesarean rate of less than 15%, but birth centres and private midwives have caresarean rates of less than 10-15%.
What is the best hospital in sydney for delivering babies?
It all depends what sort of birth experience you’re after! If you’re wanting a natural birth, home birth will be the best option. If you want a natural birth in a hospital setting, the best options would be birth centre or private midwifery care for a planned hospital birth. If you’re wanting to have intervention in your birth, a hospital birth would be best. If you choose an obstetrician, you’re far more likely to have a caesarean, episiotomy, epidural, forceps or vacuum. Choosing your care provider is the single most important decision you will make in birthing.
Is there a birth centre at westmead hospital?
No, there isn’t. If you’re after a natural birth, the best choice would be a home birth.
C section or natural delivery midwife?
Midwves cannot perform caesareans. If a caesarean was needed, the midwife would call a doctor in to perform it. Most caesareans that are performed are unnecessary and increase the risks to the mother and baby. A natural birth is the safest way to birth, and midwives are qualified specialists in natural birth.
giving birth after birth trauma
Private midwifery care will be really important so that you can have the same midwife all the way through pregnancy, birth and postnatally. It’s also important to debrief your last experience and come to a place where you feel safe to birth again.
high risk midwife sydney
Midwives are not qualified to care for high risk pregnancies. We refer these women onto obstetricians. In most cases, one or two consultations is all that is needed with the obstetrician and the midwife continues the care of the woman.
how many births proceed naturally
What a great question! It all depends what care provider you choose and where you have your baby. You see, if you choose a private midwife and birth at home, you have about a 95% chance of having a vaginal birth. If you birth in a private hospital, you have about a 33% chace of having an unassisted vaginal birth. In some hospitals, the caesarean rate is more than the vaginal birth rate! Sad but true.
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: Babies, birth, Birth choices, birth debriefing, Birth trauma, Breastfeeding, Caesarean, childbirth education, Complicated pregnancy or birth, continuity of care, Epidural, exercise, fetal monitoring, freebirth, Home birth, hospital birth, intermittent auscultation, intervention, IVF, Maternity Services Review, midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery services, Normal Birth, Nutrition, Obstetrics, postnatal depression, Preconception care, Public and private hospitals, VBAC
Interested in home birth, hospital birth or private midwifery care? Questions or comments? Email Melissa Maimann or call 0400 418 448.
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… 20% of … mothers … said they had witnessed occasions when a lack of resources put a mother at risk; 14 per cent said they had seen shortages put a baby at risk.
63% of … mothers … agreed that public maternity units resembled ”herding yards” when asked if it was an appropriate description.
Of … women who gave birth in the public system … more than a third said leaving hospital too soon was a problem, 47 per cent felt their postnatal care was inadequate, and 48 per cent experienced a lack of breastfeeding support.
Of [the] … women who gave birth in the private system … 17 per cent said they were discharged too early, 39 per cent felt their postnatal care was lacking, and 45 per cent said they did not receive adequate breastfeeding support.
Of the … mothers who gave birth in both the public and private systems, 43 per cent thought the private system was better; 30 per cent thought the public system was better.
… providing midwives with more independence to prescribe drugs would improve the system.
62% … said Australia’s 30 per cent caesarean rate was too high. A quarter thought it was mainly done for professional liability reasons and a fifth believed it was done at a mother’s request.
47% … said there was a shortage of midwives …
WHAT MOTHERS SAY
”There should be more continuity of care. Knowing your carer and trusting your carer removes the fear from childbirth and fear leads to more interventions.”
… ”There is a severe shortage of birth centre places available and in many areas it is not even an option.”
”There are so many time limits imposed on women which completely disregard the natural progression of labour in women’s bodies. Doctors are too quick to intervene, too impatient to wait and allow the body to do its job.”
… ”Women are not being given enough time to labour naturally.”
“I was not supported well enough to have a vaginal birth. I felt like they were more concerned with getting me in and out quickly so they could free up beds.”
… ”There are too many obstetricians performing unnecessary caesarean sections and other interventions due to fear of litigation.”
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: birth, Birth choices, Birth trauma, Breastfeeding, Caesarean, childbirth education, Complicated pregnancy or birth, continuity of care, Home birth, hospital birth, intervention, midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery services, Normal Birth, Obstetrics, Public and private hospitals
Posted by Melissa Maimann on Dec 3, 2009 in
Midwifery Interested in home birth, hospital birth or private midwifery care? Questions or comments? Email me or call 0400 418 448.
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Breast-feeding … can significantly lower a woman’s risk of metabolic syndrome …
… Breast-feeding for longer than nine months dropped the risk of metabolic syndrome by 86 percent in women with gestational diabetes. Women without gestational diabetes saw a 56 percent reduction in their risk of metabolic syndrome …
… The benefits of breast-feeding for infants … include lower risk of ear infections, stomach problems, respiratory illnesses, asthma, skin allergies, diabetes and SIDS. For women, breast-feeding appears to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes, breast cancer, ovarian cancer and postpartum depression …
Metabolic syndrome [includes] … abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, low levels of HDL (“good”) cholesterol, high levels of LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, high triglycerides, insulin resistance, elevated markers of inflammation and a tendency for blood to clot …
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: Breastfeeding, exercise, Nutrition, postnatal depression
Posted by Melissa Maimann on Nov 25, 2009 in
Midwifery Interested in home birth, hospital birth or private midwifery care? Questions or comments? Email me or call 0400 418 448.
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MOTHERS will be encouraged to feed their babies only breast milk for the first six months as part of an ambitious new national breastfeeding policy.
The goal would require a huge rise from present norms under which only 14 per cent of mothers fully breastfeed their babies to six months. Nearly half of mothers have abandoned reliance on breastfeeding only after three months.
Federal and state health ministers yesterday endorsed the strategy which calls for more community acceptance of breastfeeding in public, more support and training for mothers before and after delivery and increased access to parental leave.
… “considering over a quarter of Australians think that breastfeeding in public is unacceptable, we know there is a long way to go,” …
She welcomed the recommendation for more support for mothers to begin breastfeeding by placing newborn babies in skin-to-skin contact with mother immediately after birth. Too often babies were taken away for jabs and checks after delivery, at odds with newborn babies’ ”extraordinary capacity to find the breast, attach and feed”.
Support for workplaces to adapt to the needs of breastfeeding mothers was also essential …
The Health Minister, Nicola Roxon, said … ”… all of the evidence shows breastfeeding children for a longer period of time than is common in Australia has enormous health benefits both for the child and for the mother.”
The breastfeeding strategy for 2010-15 also aims to increase the numbers of mothers who continue breastfeeding their babies and supplementing with solids for 12 months and beyond …
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: Breastfeeding
Posted by Melissa Maimann on Sep 9, 2009 in
Midwifery Questions or comments? Email me at Essential Birth Consulting or call 0400 418 448.
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According to recent research … mothers who bottle-feed rather than breastfeed are putting themselves at greater risk of postnatal depression … an absence of breastfeeding has been connected with the death of a child, and … the decision to bottle-feed mimics that loss … those who bottle-fed their babies scored much higher on a postnatal depression scale than those who breastfed.
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: Breastfeeding, postnatal depression
Posted by Melissa Maimann on Aug 13, 2009 in
Birth,
Midwifery For further information, contact Melissa Maimann at Essential Birth Consulting.
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Only 60% of women who have just given birth use a highly effective contraceptive …
… Highly effective methods include sterilization, an intrauterine device, the pill, the patch, or a ring. Moderately effective methods included condoms, while those less effective included a diaphragm, cervical cap, sponge, rhythm, and withdrawal.
It interests me that the Billings Method (LAM) is considered to not be effective, when research around it shows it to be 97%+ effective. I note that the authors of this study refer to it as “rhythm” which in itself if not accurate. the rhythm method is diffferent to Billings / LAM since different rules apply to lactating women. If health professionals are not cognizant of this, then it is no wonder the method is not effective.
Melissa Maimann, Essential Birth Consulting 0400 418 448
Tags: Breastfeeding, contraception
