Avoiding the Preventable Cascades of Intervention

Over recent decades it is widely known obstetric intervention rates of labor and birth, especially in the USA, have continued to increase, with NO corresponding improvement in maternal/neonatal morbidity and mortality rates.

The hospital system is oftentimes intervening in labor, devoid of strongly indicated “Best Practice” justifications, to the point that for many hospitals/obstetricians all the medicalized labor interference of inductions, augmentations and spinal anesthesia have become so normalized and so routine, that they are correctly titling themselves as “Delivery Wards” – rather than “Birthing Units”. To describe a woman whose labor had an oxytocin drip and epidural anesthesia, was her experiencing a “normal” birth (just because the baby was born vaginally without instrumental assistance) has become such a commonly accepted term, it simply absurd just how much the truly abnormal has become utterly normalized.  Strong women give birth – Pizzas are delivered.

In the same breath, many American Student Midwives complete their qualifications, having never assisted at dozens of natural labors, and have likely never witnessed a water-birth, breech birth, or hands-and-knees birth. How on earth can they teach women the “Art of natural labor”, when practically all they have seen is the medicalized Science of epidural’ized and oxytocin’ized childbirth?

However, when we deep-dive into the practices of Birth Practitioners who have exceptionally fantastic statistics of high normal births and low maternal/neonatal compromise, what is the holistic “Art” they are using, every day, as part of their Practice? What are they doing differently?

Kathy Fray is a senior Midwife who has been New Zealand’s #1 best-selling birth, babies and motherhood Author since 2005. And New Zealand is internationally regarded as the having the world’s #1 best maternity healthcare system, with its continuity-of-care practices being the only country globally that follows all the WHO’s recommended guidelines for best maternity healthcare.

During this session on “BECOMING MOTHERWIDSE”, you will learn those “tricks of the trade” from the #1 Author-Midwife, from the world’s #1 country of maternity healthcare …hear from the “best of the best”!