Hospital back-up for planned homebirth

This post is a continuation from the MIPP midwivesVictoria blog

Midwives in this part of the world use the public maternity hospitals to make backup arrangements when we are planning homebirth. As a general rule, we plan to use the hospital nearest to the woman's home, that has the capacity to provide emergency obstetric services at any time of the day or night.

My home is situated about 20K East of the Melbourne CBD - about 30 minutes' drive from the Women's Hospital in Parkville. It takes approximately the same amount of time for me to get to either of the other two major 'tertiary' referral centres: the Mercy in Heidelberg, and Monash in Clayton. Box Hill hospital's Birralee Maternity Unit is about 15 minutes' drive from my home; the Angliss in Ferntree Gully is about 30 minutes.

I am happy to attend any hospital, either when my client requires transfer from planned homebirth to obstetric/hospital care, or when a woman in my care chooses to give birth at that hospital. The focus of a midwife's care is the *woman* - not the planned place of birth. I have often said to other midwives, and to women in my care, that *homebirth* is not an outcome. It's a location - a setting for birth.

The importance of having a plan for transfer to hospital from planned homebirth has been highlighted since the new regulatory authority AHPRA has been set up, with a long list of codes, guidelines, and statements that define a midwife's practice.  The NMBA Safety and Quality Framework for Privately Practising Midwives attending homebirths  has a requirement for  "Clearly articulated referral pathways for referral and /or consultation in accordance with ACM Consultation and Referral Guidelines."

Homebirth is the unique domain of women who intend to give birth without medical intervention, establishing labour spontaneously at Term, and progressing to birth without the need for medical or surgical assistance.  Babies born under such conditions are usually well, and require little or no assistance to make the transition from the womb to the outside world.

The midwife's role in planned homebirth is to determine when, and if, complications arise.  At that point the decision may need to be made to transfer to hospital.  Such a decision cannot be made at the time of booking, or even at Term prior to the onset of labour.  The decision-making process is an ongoing, dynamic one, which must take into account all the related factors at that point in time.


Your comments are welcome.