birth attendants.info

Pinky McKay

2009-05-25T12:36:09Z

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International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and a Certified Infant Massage Instructor, Pinky McKay is a Melbourne based writer and editor specialising in health, education and family issues. She also works 'hands on' with parents, teaching infant massage and solving breastfeeding problems, with many clients being referred to her by health professionals such as GPs and MCH nurses.

Pinky is the author of five books, including 'Sleeping Like a baby' (Penguin 2006), Toddler Tactics Penguin (Feb 2008) and '100 Ways to Calm the Crying' (Penguin - release June 2008)

Yoga Belly

2009-05-25T12:24:46Z

www.yogabelly.com.au

]]> Yoga belly integrates the practices of yoga with a holistic view of pregnancy, childbirth and life beyond.

Natural Therapy Pages

2008-12-02T00:46:51Z

www.naturaltherapypages.com.au

]]> On this site you can find comprehensive descriptions and articles of interest about many of the natural therapies available in Australia.

Fertile Ground

2008-10-06T02:43:32Z

www.fertileground.com.au

]]> Fertile Ground Health Group is a leading provider of natural medicine solutions for your fertility and health.

Dr Sarah J Buckley

2008-09-04T05:16:51Z

Dr Sarah J Buckley

]]> Sarah J Buckley, MD, is a GP with qualifications in GP obstetrics; author of the internationally-acclaimed book Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering: The Wisdom and Science of Gentle Choices in Pregnancy, Birth, and Parenting and currently full-time mother to her four children, all born at home.

mamashanti

2008-07-22T11:30:24Z

http://www.mamashanti.com.au

]]> mamashanti yoga for birth :: birth support is dedicated to bringing the joy of yoga to pregnant women and their partners. Based in Melbourne, mamashanti's prenatal yoga program has been created to enhance your experience of pregnancy and ignite your birthing wisdom.

Orgasmic Birth

2008-07-12T10:52:25Z

Orgasmic Birth

]]> The Best-Kept Secret Orgasmic Birth is a documentary that examines the intimate nature of birth, an everyday miracle, and the powerful role it plays in women’s lives when they are permitted to experience it fully. This documentary asks viewers to re-examine everything they thought they knew about giving birth and the potential it holds.

Deprogramming Birth

2008-07-12T10:38:16Z

Deprogramming Birth

]]> I sensed that birth didn't have to be this traumatic, and took myself on a journey to discover how to deprogram my Western ideas of birth. (Thanks Emma for Link)

Breast Crawl

2008-06-02T03:24:59Z

breastcrawl1.wmv

]]> A fantastic video created by Unicef to show the early initialisation of breastfeeding through ‘Breast Crawl’. A great example of the amazing instincts a baby is born with

Birthing Wisdom

2008-05-26T11:57:01Z

Birthing Wisdom

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She is a regular presenter at conferences, seminars and workshops on birth and counseling issues.

Evidence for the Birth Attendant

2008-05-18T10:15:48Z

A systematic review of evidence by the Cochrane library, which reviewed fourteen trials involving more than 5000 women, provides the most supportive argument for the use of birth attendant care in labour (Hodnett, 2003). This review found that:

The continuous presence of a support person reduced the likelihood of medication for pain relief, operative vaginal delivery, caesarean delivery, and a 5-minute Apgar score less than 7. Continuous support was also associated with a slight reduction in the length of labour. Six trials evaluated the effects of support on mothers' views of their childbirth experiences; while the trials used different measures....in each trial the results favoured the group who had received continuous support.

Earlier research show similar findings. Following their review of this evidence Klaus, Kennell and Klaus (1993) itemised the positive effects of birth attendant care as:

50% reduction on caesarean rates,
25% shorter labour,
60% reduction in epidural requests,
40% reduction in syntocinon use,
30% reduction in analgesia use,
40% reduction in forceps delivery.

bubhub

2008-05-18T07:09:32Z

BubHub

Maternity Coalition

2008-05-18T07:07:15Z

Maternity Coalition

]]> Maternity Coalition is Australia's National Maternity Consumer Organisation

The Value of a Positive Birth Experiance

2008-05-18T07:04:48Z

It is recognised that the women who report negative experiences during the birth event, and their babies, are at increased risk of ill health in both the short and long term (Scott, Klaus & Klaus, 1999; Odent, 1984). Despite the fact that interventions during labour are known to lead to negative feelings, the use of interventions in childbirth continues to increase dramatically (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2002; Gilliland, 2002). It has long been known that reducing fear by supporting the birthing event in as natural manner as possible reduces the need for interventions and enhances the outcomes (Kofinas, 1985; Lederman, et al., 1978: Levinson, Gershon & Shnider, 1979; Odent, 1984; Balaskas, 1992; Sauls, 2002). It therefore stands to reason that supporting the birth event in a way that reduces fear can only assist the woman in achieving a positive birth experience.

The Birth Attendants Role

2008-05-18T07:03:46Z

Your birth attendant will develop a relationship with you and your partner during pregnancy. She will help you to conceptualise your ideal birth and to develop your birth plan. During labour your birth attendant will support you emotionally and physically, as well as help to maintain the correct birthing environment that you need to enhance the process of labour. The overall aim of your birth attendant is to serve your needs in order to achieve the best possible birth experience for you.

Your birth attendant will focus exclusively on your beliefs about birth. This means that she will not impose her own ideal of childbirth on you. The majority of birth attendants work in the hospital birth unit with women who choose medical care during labour.

Since you are paying privately for your birth attendant you can also have her support you in early labour at home if this is approved by your hospital. Because women have better birth experiences when a birth attendant supports them, more women in the western world are now employing a birth attendant for their births. Because of this, the birth attendant has become a valued member of the care team in birth units around the world.

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