Resources For Expectant Mothers
Birth by cesarean can be a life saving procedure for mother or baby. But a cesarean can also put both at risk for serious health complications. Healthy pregnant women can end up having a cesarean because birth interventions such as elective inductions, continuous electronic monitoring, or epidurals were used routinely rather than for a medical indication.
Hospital routines such as not allowing women to change positions in bed or walk in labor, expecting them to give birth on their back, or directing them to push when their body is not ready increase the odds for a cesarean. However, low risk women who choose to give birth at home or in a birth center, choose midwifery care, or have a doula at their hospital birth lower their odds for a cesarean birth. Many women are not aware of their right to receive accurate and comprehensive information regarding their medical care, their right to informed consent and their right to informed refusal. The right to make an informed medical decision based on their knowledge and their own values and preferences.
As this book reveals, finding accurate and comprehensive information on the risks of cesarean birth and how to reduce the odds of having one is a challenge. The resources on this page will help to increase your awareness about the many birth options available to you and provide you with information regarding your rights as a patient. As the evidence in this book shows, they are also likely to reduce your odds for a cesarean delivery.
Hospital routines such as not allowing women to change positions in bed or walk in labor, expecting them to give birth on their back, or directing them to push when their body is not ready increase the odds for a cesarean. However, low risk women who choose to give birth at home or in a birth center, choose midwifery care, or have a doula at their hospital birth lower their odds for a cesarean birth. Many women are not aware of their right to receive accurate and comprehensive information regarding their medical care, their right to informed consent and their right to informed refusal. The right to make an informed medical decision based on their knowledge and their own values and preferences.
As this book reveals, finding accurate and comprehensive information on the risks of cesarean birth and how to reduce the odds of having one is a challenge. The resources on this page will help to increase your awareness about the many birth options available to you and provide you with information regarding your rights as a patient. As the evidence in this book shows, they are also likely to reduce your odds for a cesarean delivery.
Nicette Jukelevics and Henci Goer: The Risks of Cesarean Section - A Coalition for Improving Maternity Services Fact Sheet & A Checklist For Expectant Mothers.
Fact Sheet (PDF)
A Guide to Effective Care in Pregnancy and Childbirth
www.childbirthconnection.org/article.asp?ClickedLink=329&ck=10218&area=27
Alameda County Public Health Commission, CA: Informed Consent
www.acphd.org/user/services/AtoZ_PrgDtls.asp?PrgId=98 (PDF)
American Association of Birth Centers
www.birthcenters.org
American College of Nurse Midwives
www.mymidwife.org
American College of Nurse Midwives: Share With Women, from Journal of Midwifery and Women's Health
www.acnm.org/share_with_women.cfm
American Academy of Family Physicians: Breech Babies: What Can I do if My Baby is Breech? www.familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/women/pregnancy/labor/310.html
Arkansas - Bringbackvbac.org
www.bringbackvbac.org
Association for Improvements in Maternity Services, UK: Midwifery for the 20th Century, Article
www.aims.org.uk
Australian College of Midwives: Research Supports Midwifery Care
www.midwives.org.au/Default.aspx?tabid=325
BBC News, Emma Wilkinson Health reporter: "Needless" birth induction fears
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7833058.stm
Birth Network National
www.birthnetwork.org
The Birth Survey
www.thebirthsurvey.com
BOLD the Play, by Karen Brody
www.boldaction.org
Boston University School of Public Health, Health Law Department: Patient Rights at Your Fingertips www.patient-rights.org/finger/fingertips.html
Breech Birth: Stories of normal breech births
www.breechbirth.ca/Birth%20Stories/Birth%20Stories.html
Business of Being Born: A documentary film
www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com
Childbirth Connection: VBAC or Repeat C-section?
www.childbirthconnection.com/article.asp?ClickedLink=293&ck=10212&area=27
Childbirth Connection: What Every Mother Needs to Know About Cesarean Section
www.childbirthconnection.com/article.asp?ck=10164
Childbirth Connection: The Rights of Childbearing Women
www.childbirthconnection.org/article.asp?ck=10084&ClickedLink=0&area=27
Choices in Childbirth
www.choicesinchildbirth.org
Citizens for Midwifery: What Does Good Maternity Care Look Like?
www.cfmidwifery.org/pdf/ThreeModelsofCareCorrected.pdf (PDF)
Citizens for Midwifery: What "Are" Our Rights in Childbirth?
cfmidwifery.org/pdf/What%20ARE%20our%20rights.pdf (PDF)
Coalition for Improving Maternity Services: Having a Baby? Ten Questions to Ask
www.motherfriendly.org/downloads.php
Cochrane Library Plain Language Reviews: Pregnancy and Childbirth
www.cochrane.org/reviews/en/topics/87_reviews.html
Consumer Reports, Health: Take the Maternity Care Quiz
www.consumerreports.org/health/medical-conditions-treatments/pregnancy-childbirth/maternity-care/maternity-care-quiz/maternity-care-quiz.htm
DONA International: What is a Doula?
www.dona.org/mothers/index.php
Henci Goer, Author: Articles on Pregnancy and Childbirth
www.HenciGoer.com/articles
Homebirth.org.uk: What is Optimal Fetal Positioning?
www.homebirth.org.uk/ofp.htm
Informed Choices: Evidence-based pamphlets from the UK
www.infochoice.org
International Cesarean Awareness Network: What To Do if Your Hospital Has Banned VBAC
www.ican-online.org/vbac/your-right-refuse-what-do-if-your-hospital-has-banned-vbac-q
Intramountain Healthcare: Elective Labor Induction, When Is It Okay?
kr.ihc.com/ext/Dcmnt?ncid=51061832 (PDF)
Everyday Miracles: A Celebration of Birth, video
www.lamaze.org/ExpectantParents/PregnancyBirthResources/WatchWomenGiveBirthWithConfidence/tabid/183/Default.aspx
Laboring Under An Illusion: Mass Media Childbirth vs. The Real Thing: A documentary by Vicki Elson
www.birth-media.com
Lamaze Institute for Normal Birth: Six Care Practices That Support Normal Birth
www.lamaze.org/Default.aspx?tabid=90
Lamaze Institute for Normal Birth: Why Transparency Matters: A Fact Sheet for Birth Advocates
www.lamaze.org/Advocacy/BirthNetworksOrganizingYourCommunity/ToolsTipsandResources/WhyTransparencyMatters/tabid/530/Default.aspx
Lamaze International: Making Tough Decisions Without All the Facts-How Inadequate Informed Consent Puts Childbearing Families at Risk
www.lamaze.org/MediaProfessionals/NewsReleases/MakingToughDecisionsWithoutAlltheFacts/tabid/743/Default.aspx
Larsen, Jess: Midwifery & Feminism: A Case for Common Ground
Article (PDF)
Mamacampaign to Promote Midwifery Care
www.mamacampaign.org
March of Dimes: Induction by Request
www.marchofdimes.com/prematurity/21239_20203.asp
March of Dimes: Cesarean by Request
www.marchofdimes.com/prematurity/21239_19673.asp
Medscape OB/GYN and Women's Health: The Real Risks for Cesareans, Interview with Lamaze President
www.medscape.com/viewarticle/706095
Midwives Alliance of North America: Find a Midwife
www.mana.org/memberlist.html
MotherBaby International Film Festival: Films about normal birth
www.motherbabiff.org
Mothering Magazine: Once A Cesarean, Always A Cesarean-The Sorry State of Birth Choices in America www.mothering.com/articles/pregnancy_birth/cesarean_vbac/sorry-state.html
Mothering Magazine: Cesarean Birth in A Culture of Fear
www.childbirthconnection.org/pdfs/cesarean-birth-mothering-ponte.pdf (PDF)
Mother's Advocate: How To Have a Better Birth
www.injoyvideos.com/mothersadvocate/index.htm
Mothers Naturally-Discover the safe, personal care of a midwife
www.Mothersnaturally.org
National Institute for Clinical Excellence: Care of Women and Their Babies During Labor www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/word/UNGCG55v2.doc (DOC)
National Institute for Clinical Excellence: Monitoring Your Baby's Heartbeat in Labor
www.nice.org.uk/guidance/index.jsp?action=download&o=28972
National Women's Health Alliance: Your Right To Your Medical Records
www.nwhalliance.org/yourrighttoyourrecords.htm
Ohio State University, University Medical Center: Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC)
medicalcenter.osu.edu/PatientEd/Materials/PDFDocs/women-in/pregnancy/v-back.pdf (PDF)
Oklahoma Birth Network: VBAC Myths and Facts
www.oklahomabirthnetwork.com/guides/vbac_mythfact%20_final.pdf (PDF)
Our Bodies Ourselves
www.obos.org
Orgasmic Birth: A Documentary Film
www.orgasmicbirth.com
Ottawa Health Research Institute: Personal Decision Guide, A patient decision aid
www.ohri.ca/decisionaid
Patchworks Films: Born in the USA, Childbirth and Women's Choices, a documentary film
www.patchworksfilms.net/films/born_usa.html
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder After Childbirth
www.angelfire.com/moon2/jkluchar1995
Rally to Save the North Shore Birth Center in Beverly, MA: Youtube video
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lY9emj4OLII
Reuters News: Peru embraces vertical birth to save lives
www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSN7B38571520080711
Simkin, Penny: Comfort In Labor , Helpful Positions for Birth
www.childbirthconnection.org/pdf.asp?PDFDownload=comfort-in-labor-simkin (PDF)
Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada: Elective C-Sections Add Risks During Pregnancy
www.sogc.org/media/pdf/advisories/Backgrounder_June2008_Elective-C-Sections_e.pdf (PDF)
Solace After a Challenging Childbirth
www.solaceformothers.org
VBAC.com: a woman-centered, evidence based, resource
www.vbac.com
Vermont/New Hampshire VBAC Project: Birth Choices After Cesarean
www.nnepqin.org/ViewPage?id=6
Where's My Midwife?
www.wheresmymidwife.org
World Respected Childbirth Week, May 11-May 17
www.smar.info