RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Landmark Reports for Revamping US Maternity Care system Point to Rapid Gains in Quality and Value that are Within Reach
Consumers, Providers and Other Groups Hammer Out System-Wide Recommendations and Action Steps
Washington DC January 2010–Childbirth Connection today released two landmark reports that create a framework for revamping maternity care in the US and advancing health care reform: “2020 Vision for a High Quality, High Value Maternity Care System” and “Blueprint for Action.” The reports were developed through an extensive multi-year collaboration with more than 100 maternity care leaders representing industry stakeholders – from hospitals and health plans to consumers and providers. These reports and related papers have just been published in a special supplement of Women’s Health Issues.
Click here to read the full press release from Childbirth Connection.
A new study was published in September in the journal Birth from McMaster University in Ontario, Canada
"The study found serious complications - death, the need for medical care immediately after birth, neonatal resuscitation, admission to a pediatric intensive care unit and low birth weight - were lower in the home birth group (2.3 per cent) compared to the hospital group (2.8 per cent), as were rates for all interventions (5.2 per cent home birth vs. 8.1 per cent hospital), including cesarean section."
Outcomes of planned home birth with registered midwife versus planned hospital birth with midwife or physician
This great new home birth study was published 8/31/09 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
Another excellent piece of research from our sisters to the north, the strength is that the data includes all Registered Midwife-attended births in the province as data collection is mandatory. And, as one midwife there said about conclusions, it shows that, when comparing the same midwives' outcomes in home vs hospital, "we're better than ourselves when women choose home birth."
Click here for the full text pdf
Read an excellent summary of "Perinatal mortality and morbidity in a nationwide cohort of 529,688 low-risk planned home and hospital births," recently published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The summary was written by MAWS member and Portland midwife, Wendy Gordon, CPM, LM.
Read Nancy K. Lowe's editorial (click the title above for the pdf) published in the recent Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, Neonatal Nursing, the official journal of the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN).
Reforming Maternity Care In America—Recommendations to Obama-Biden Transition Team
Click here to download a pdf of this new document released by the Midwives Alliance of North America. "It is an issue brief designed for the following target audiences: Obama-Biden Transition Team, U.S. Health and Human Services and Maternal and Child Health Bureau personnel, MCH policy makers, legislators, public health officials, insurers and payers of MCH services, and anyone who works in the MCH milieu."
The Millbank Report - Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve
In October, a report was released and covered in the media - Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve. The report was developed through a collaborative effort among Childbirth Connection, the Reforming States Group, and the Milbank Memorial Fund. It "identifies many opportunities for improving the quality, outcomes, and value of maternity care" in the United States and presents policy recommendations. Click here to read the about the report at Childbirth Connection and download the report as a pdf. To order a free copy of the report, click here (thanks to the Milbank Memorial Fund.)
CPM Issue Brief - Certified Professional Midwives in the United States
From the National Association of Certified Professional Midwives (NACPM) accouncement: "This document is the result of an historic collaboration among the organizations that played essential roles in the formation of the CPM credential and in the ongoing support for the profession. It is the first comprehensive description of the profession and will be useful to CPMs and to women and families, as well as to legislators and policy makers who need to know about the contribution that CPMs are making to maternity care in our country." Click here to read more and download the issue brief.
DOH COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS
In 2007, the Washington State Department of Health was directed by the legislature to study the costs versus benefits of licensed midwifery to the State of Washington. The report, entitled "Midwifery Licensure and Discipline Program in Washington State: Economic Costs and Benefits," was completed October 31, 2007, and released to the Midwives' Association of Washington State and to the public on January 8, 2008.
The study found that low-risk, out-of-hospital births of Medicaid patients cost the state at least $473,000 less than comparable low-risk hospital births during the two-year state budget cycle (or $236,000 per year), and over $2.7 million in costs are avoided per two-year budget cycle when both public and private insurers are included.
The study also noted, but did not quantify, many other prospective costs that are avoided, due to the intensive level of prenatal and postnatal care provided by licensed midwives. These include: higher breast-feeding rates, fewer low-birth weight babies, a greatly reduced c-section rate, and a significantly lower risk of other costly medical interventions during labor and birth. Click here to read a summary of the DOH report.
To read the entire study, click the link below.
DOWNLOAD A PDF OF THE REPORT
Outcomes of planned home births with certified professional midwives: large prospective study in North America published in the British Medical Journal in 2005 - Click here to read the study>
CESAREAN SECTION PREVENTION VIDEO
