2012 conventions 2012 election 2013 session 2013 special election arts arts and culture author ballot measures basketball bomb books boy scouts budget bullying business charlie hales children clackamas climate change coal college courts crime culture culture club democrats drugs economy education environment family film fluoride food gay rights guns handguns health health care health insurance high school history housing immigration international internet kitzhaber law legislature lgbt literary arts living marijuana marriage media medicine mental health military minor parties mohamed mohamud movies music native americans news newspaper obama olympics oregon our town parenting pers photography police politcs politics port portland portland business journal president prevention public safety religion republicans rnc romney rural salem sam adams sandy hook schools science shooting sports suicide supreme court taxes technology television terrorism theater third parties transportation union university of oregon washington wildfire women

Two and a half weeks ago, my husband and I delivered our first child at Andaluz.  I had a low-risk pregnancy and felt very comfortable with the midwives.  My labor and delivery were more eventful then anticipated (70 hours of contractions, military asynclitic position of our son (his head was tilted back and to the side), he became stuck on the lip of my cervix for an extended period of time, and after birth had difficulty breathing on his own for several minutes and required oxygen).  However, throughout the entire process, the midwives and staff took great care of our entire family, monitored our child extremely closely, kept us informed of all our options and gave us the choice to continue laboring at the birth center of be transported (non-emergency) to a hospital.  I never felt that I or our child were in danger and my mom (who was an OB nurse for 13 years and encouraged me to look into midwives for our birth) commented that she felt that I received more monitoring and care than I ever would have gotten in a hospital setting.  Our son is a healthy, thriving baby and we are so thankful we had him at Andaluz.  Had we been laboring at a hospital, even under hospital midwives' care, hospital policies would have dictated a mandatory c-section for "failure to progress" long before we had our son.  Instead, we were able to have a vaginal birth, which we felt was best and healthiest for both our baby and myself.

As a veterinarian, I am dependent upon the state licensing board to practice my profession and am thankful that they are diligent about investigating complaints and ensuring that those they license are practicing according to the law.  However, the midwives in this situation were practicing according to state law - it is legal for them to perform home births of breech and multiple babies.  They closely monitored the mother and transported her to the hospital when they felt the situation was beyond their capabilities.  I would not understand if I were to be investigated for doing something that was completely legal by my state's professional standards.  Other veterinarians I know may not practice medicine in the same fashion as I feel it should be practiced, but if they are abiding by state law, I believe it is up to them and their clients to choose how they work, even if it is different from how I would do things.  

posted 2 years, 10 months ago
view in context