The Benefits of Using a Midwife During Childbirth

A growing trend in the United States among expecting mothers is the consideration of hiring a midwife for aid during the birthing process. This alternative form of giving birth goes back to using the natural methodology rather than relying on technology to provide results. Also, having a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) helps increase comfort levels in the birthing environment.

Though the trend is rising, there is still some skepticism on the topic and too often mothers are discouraged due to little support from family and friends. Despite these speculative valuations regarding the utility of midwife child births, the inherent benefits are glaring. Hiring a midwife allows for the baby to be born in the home in the presence of a loving family, as opposed to being born in a time-crazed hospital that is dependent upon schedules, a tired, overworked staff, and profit margins.

A recent study, conducted in California, compared the birth process rates between a midwife birthing center and a traditional hospital. The findings were quite intriguing. Cesarean rates at the center were only at 1.5% where as patients who were attended to by a doctor had the procedure at a rate of nearly 16%. While this is just circumstantial evidence, it does suggest that perhaps birthing in a natural environment helps the process go by easier. The transfer-to-hospital rates at the center were at 13.5 percent. The study never indicated the reasons for a patient's transference to the hospital. Between the two birthing centers, there was relatively no difference in the rates of baby deaths, bleeding, birth injury, or respiratory distress syndrome. Midwives are less likely to use disruptive technologies that may lead to childbirth injury.

While the study doesn't seems to suggest that one option is better than the other in terms of health and safety, it does present an alternative to the conventional methods which might be preferred by expecting mothers. In fact, 76 percent of mothers who have experienced both hospital births and home births said that they liked the home birth more than they did the hospital birth. 91 percent of mothers who have had their child at home say that they would definitely have their next child at home again.

There are also other monetary benefits to midwife, home childbirths. Giving birth to a baby at a hospital ranges in cost from $4,000 - $6,000, where as a certified professional midwife usually charges about $2,000, everything included. Some state insurance agencies will cover that cost as well.