Lecture 1: References and Resources
Bowser, Diana and Kathleen Hill. (2010). “Exploring Evidence for Disrespect and Abuse in Facility-Based Childbirth.” USAID. (https://www.ghdonline.org/uploads/Respectful_Care_at_Birth_9-20-101_Final1.pdf)
Cadee, Franka and CN Purandaree. (2018). Open Letter to the President of Hungary from the International Confederation of Midwives and International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics. (http://birthmonopoly.com/bmp/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Ader_joint-ICM-FIGO-letter_30-January-2018.pdf)
Harman, Toni and Alex Wakeford (directors). (2012). Freedom for Birth [Motion Picture]. UK: Alto Film Production. Watch the movie here for $3.99. (http://microbirth.com/freedom-for-birth/)
Hayes-Klein, Hermine, et al. (2014) “Brief of Human Rights in Childbirth et al. as Amucus Curiae in Support of Plaintiff Rinat Dray.” (https://s3.amazonaws.com/birthmonopoly/Dray-Amicus-Brief-Jan-2015.pdf)
Human Rights in Childbirth (http://www.humanrightsinchildbirth.org/)
Pascucci, Cristen. (2014). “Why Are We Asking Doctors if Women Should Have Midwives?” Birth Monopoly Website Blog Post. (http://birthmonopoly.com/midwives/)
Ternovszky vs. Hungary. (2010). European Court of Human Rights. (See downloads for this lecture)
The White Ribbon Alliance. (2011). “Respectful Maternity Care: The Universal Rights of Childbearing Women.” (https://www.whiteribbonalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Final_RMC_Charter.pdf)
World Health Organization (2015). “The Prevention and Elimination of Disrespect and Abuse During Facility-Based Childbirth.” (http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/134588/WHO_RHR_14.23_eng.pdf;jsessionid=9B1747CE25A7F876CA8FBB346D8B98BC?sequence=1)
I am in Florida and there is SOME access to out of hospital midwifery care. It is regulated by the state and even covered by medicaid, but the midwives are few and can struggle to have a sustainable practice.
In FL, they interfere with the right to determine the circumstances of birth because they do not “allow” midwives to attend breech births, multiples, and VBACs after a certain number of cesareans. They also restrict midwives from attending home births/birth center births for other reasons that are determined to be “high risk.”
Yes. So common around the U.S. and the world. The difference between controlling birthing people’s choices and supporting them in making their choices as safe as they can be.
When I lived in South Georgia there was one homebirth midwife in practice and after she moved away there were no births at home for birthing people unless they were unassisted. I saw a lot of women go to Florida where there were midwives attending home births.
In Texas, our laws are very reasonable. Direct entry (lay) and CPMs can attend homebirths. CPMs and CNMs can attend birth center births. And CNMs can attend and be hired by hospitals. Our birth center midwives phase out certain cases (especially going past 42 weeks), calling for a transfer to a hospital. In this case, the midwife becomes only a support person in the hospital, losing their ability for continuity of care.
Texas has violated my rights twice now I’m realizing that only because two deliveries and I’m still not getting treated fairly it’s gotten worse but I’m not giving up especially now we need to expose San Antonio Texas like now
Thank you so much for these resources. This is so helpful to my dissertation! And it’s just fascinating.
It was fascinating to research midwifery laws in MN. While our state is fairly liberal in it’s policy on licensing midwives, we are definitely still coming out of a dark past. Our licensure of midwives dates back to 1909, but then in 1940 the state stopped granting and renewing midwife licenses. Nurse midwives came into popularity around this time. In 1984, the last licensed midwife died. Midwives practicing between 1940 and 2000 practiced in a bubble – the 1909 law was still upheld so midwife practice was ‘legal’, but now midwives were allowed to be licensed. In 1999/2000, the law passed to define the scope of practice of direct-entry midwives and started re-licensing midwives.
In MN, as of 2018 – we have 44 licensed midwives (CPM) and 335 licensed nurse midwives (CNM). In 2014, a law passed that removed restrictions on CNMs and allowed them to be primary providers with no supervisions. CPMs are allowed this as well, but CNMs enjoy more institutional power like admitting and practicing privileges in a hospital setting.
Also of note in MN, it is NOT illegal for a midwife to operate without a license. I think of what Elizabeth Caitlin is going through in NY and this makes me thankful to live in MN.
Here in Mississippi we are unregulated and unlicensed at this time. Our choices are limited to hospital birth (with more and more rural hospitals doing away with maternity. support altogether) and home birth with a midwife who may be a CPM or a DEM, and in the entire state we have just 6 practicing midwives with any verifiable training and education. We have no birth clinics options. Cooperation between OB’s and midwives is virtually non-existent and in the hospital there tends to be some ‘competition’ or hostility between staff and doula support.
I hear you. It’s appalling how limited and hostile the options are in so many U.S. states. Seems like the southeast and midwest are particularly bad.
In New Jersey, midwives are prohibited from attending VBACs in a home setting 🙁
The VBAC bans are particularly galling. Drives me nuts!
I’m getting a video error message for this lecture 1:Human rights in Childbirth, asking me to try again soon 🙁
Any work around for this?
OPE! there it is. NVM!