We share the Philosophy of Anne Frye adapted from 'Holistic Midwifery' Vol. I (1998).
Pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding are natural, normal functions of a woman's mind, body, emotions and spirit, all of which are equally important. As midwives, we seek to nurture a woman's sense of personal strength and self confidence so that she may realise birth as an empowering and enlarging experience. We do not feel we 'deliver' babies, we assist and support women to give birth. We believe that women are uniquely suited to attend other women during this life passage. Most of the world's women give birth with midwives who serve as guides to the total pregnancy experience. Birth at home among family members, coupled with continuous care by skilled attendants, can provide an optimal environment for the majority of women. When birth is integrated into life as a family event, the family is strengthened as well.
As care-givers, our clinical skills, intellects and intuitions all serve as valuable tools in our work as guides to understanding the process of pregnancy and birth. We believe the things which matter most in creating a physically healthy pregnancy are those things you have the most control over. On an emotional, psychological and spiritual level, we recognise that birth is not an event which is isolated from the totality of a woman's life. We endeavor to assist women to become as conscious of their personal processes as possible so that they may have a broad base of resources to draw on during their birth experiences. Our responsibility is to make you aware of any concerns we have based on our past experience and current perceptions. We seek to offer informed choice, not merely informed consent. You are our clients, never our patients. Any decisions regarding options are yours to make. At the same time, there are limits to what we are willing to take on as responsible care providers. When and if our limits are reached, we will let you know immediately.
We offer our services working in partnership with clients before, during and after the birth of their child. We feel we offer a high standard of care, two perspectives, two sets of skilled hands, and the different perceptions gained from varied backgrounds available at all times. For us, midwifery is a continually evolving process and we are always learning from our experiences. Working in partnership with clients means we are supporting you to create your own experience. You are responsible for the birth and we are assisting you in taking that responsibility. It also means we must all be in agreement regarding the care needed and our ability to provide such care. Complete antenatal care creates the opportunity to develop a relationship before the birth as well as to establish the parameters of well-being unique to each individual client.
Any environment, whether home, hospital or birthing centre, presents a distinct set of risk factors for birth. Nothing can guarantee a perfect outcome. We believe each woman has the right to an informed choice of the environment which she perceives as safest for her and her baby. Many women do not appreciate mainstream obstetrics' approach to pregnancy as a problem waiting to happen. Our care reflects their own desire to trust birth and themselves. For such women, homebirth is a logical choice. We endeavor to create an environment which supports women in opening to their own instinctive process rather than imposing artificial interventions or attempting to make labour conform to a specific pattern. When allowed to follow its natural course, pregnancy usually results in the birth of a healthy baby and mother. The range of natural variation is extremely wide. Occasionally, a situation arises during pregnancy or labour which necessitates specialised care that cannot be provided in a homebirth setting.
While we clearly feel it is not our place to "sell" anyone on the ideal of homebirth, some insights into our cultural programming about birth may help you to sort out your feelings and facilitate your decision-making process. Furthermore we strongly feel that safety is not an issue (if it were there would be no argument: statistics repeatedly demonstrate that homebirth is safer than hospital). Rather, we feel it is an issue of assuming personal responsibility for your choice. For partners who are puzzled by the desire of women to birth at home, perhaps this discussion will help you to understand more about the underlying motives of such a choice.
Although hospitals are widely believed to be the safest place to give birth, there has never been even one study that shows this belief to be based in fact. In reality, the studies which have been done (most of which attempt to discredit the safety of homebirth and midwifery) have proven overwhelmingly that hospitals and doctor attendance at birth do not result in the best outcomes for mothers or babies. Clearly hospitals, doctors and technology do not, in and of themselves, ensure a safer outcome. Nevertheless, our belief is that they do. It is almost impossible for many people to look at the matter objectively.
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