Pregnant woman are increasingly seeking the opportunity to give birth with a private midwife as the primary caregiver.
Article first published in Sensitive Midwifery Magazine, April – June 2015 p. 53 – 55
Pregnant woman are increasingly seeking the opportunity to give birth with a private midwife as the primary caregiver. However, there is very little data, if any, about maternal and neonatal outcomes under private midwifery care, which makes it difficult to help pregnant woman to make an informed decision.
Dr Diana du Plessis conducted a retrospective study to determine the maternal and neonatal outcomes of normal, uncomplicated pregnancies in a private midwifery obstetrics unit(MOU), and to find out wether these types of vaginal births are safe.
Hysterectomies and maternal deaths did not occur during the study period, and the maternity morbidity rates were low for both vaginal births and caesarean sections.
The results were interesting; according to the study, the private MOU was an excellent example of midwifery-led care, with the potential for replication on a national level.
