It seems as though the staff of NBC's 'Today' have made it loud and clear that they think having a baby outside of a hospital is irresponsible and dangerous; so says their so-called 'investigative reporting' on the subject in a recent segment. As anyone reading my blog may or may not know, my wife and I are about to have our first baby this November, and after much deep thought and research on the subject we decided that a drug-free birth in a local birth center is what we wanted.

So to our total disgust, NBC's Today Show did a segment on September 11th called 'The Perils of Home Births' (watch it here) in which they focused on a home birth couple that lost their baby. While it was truly sad and tragic what happened to this couple, the segment on the whole was unbalanced, biased and downright yellow in it's portrayal of home birthing in particular and midwifery in general.

The American College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM) issued the following response a few days later:

September 14, 2009

Dear Producers of The Today Show,

A real opportunity to educate women about safe and high-quality maternity care in the United States has been lost. The American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) is extremely disappointed with the imbalanced reporting done by The Today Show’s September 11 segment “The Perils of Midwifery.”

The segment (later renamed “The Perils of Home Births” online) highlighted a single tragic story of a family’s loss of their baby during childbirth at home with a midwife. Our hearts go out to the McKenzie family. We hope that they are receiving the support they need in this extremely difficult time.

It would be inappropriate for ACNM to comment on the specifics of this situation. What we can say is that adverse outcomes can happen in any birth setting. Sometimes they are preventable, and sometimes they are not. Health care providers in every setting—home, birth center, or hospital—know the tragedy of loss.

In telling this story, The Today Show failed to do the research needed to provide insight on either homebirth or midwifery, relying instead on a series of sweeping, misinformed statements. Women choosing midwifery care were described as simply following a fashionable “trend” made popular by celebrities, rather than as women making thoughtful, well-considered decisions. Childbirth “without drugs or doctors” was labeled “extreme birth,” decades of published research on perinatal outcomes were ignored, and the midwifery profession overall was badly misrepresented.

Certified nurse-midwives (CNMs) and certified midwives (CMs) are well-educated, licensed, and certified health professionals who are experts in normal birth and women’s health. They provide comprehensive care during pregnancy, labor, and childbirth. They practice as independent providers within a health care system that provides for consultation, collaborative management, or referral as needed, with physicians and other health professionals. Their skillful, attentive care maximizes the likelihood of a healthy baby, a healthy mother, and a satisfying birth experience. In 2006, CNMs and CMs attended more than 317,000 births in the United States—nearly 11% of all vaginal births—in hospitals, birth centers, and at home. Overall, midwife-attended births have increased by about 33% in the past ten years.

This rising popularity of midwife-attended births has been supported by a growing body of research demonstrating that the best outcomes for low-risk women occur with midwifery-led care, continuous support, and low-technology strategies during labor. Unfortunately, women in US hospitals are not routinely provided with these options. Most Americans would be surprised to learn that, in spite of a vast array of technologies and medical interventions, the US has nearly the worst maternal and perinatal death rates in the developed world. This fact is a major reason why women are seeking alternatives in childbirth.

A review of the published research on childbirth reveals that midwives are leading providers of maternity care in most developed countries, and that midwifery care is an excellent option in the US. Here are just a few research–based publications from the past year alone:
Evidence-based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve cites several systematic reviews showing improved outcomes associated with midwifery-led care.

A recent Cochrane Review concluded that midwifery-led care is the best option for women with low-risk pregnancies.

An April 2009 British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology study concluded that planned homebirth is as safe as a planned hospital birth for women with low-risk pregnancies.

Authors of two recently published studies from two different Canadian provinces (September 2009 Canadian Medical Association Journal and September 2009 BIRTH) concluded that women who planned homebirths attended by a registered midwife had outcomes that were at least as good as women who planned hospital births.

Lastly, also missing from this story was the voice of ACNM, the professional association representing most midwives in the United States, as well as the voices of those who have dedicated their lives to improving the health and well-being of women and infants by promoting evidence-based maternity care. If we had been consulted, The Today Show would have been in a better position to deliver useful information to women and families about their childbirth choices.

ACNM urges The Today Show to produce a different story—a well-balanced account of midwifery and what current research tells us about the risks and benefits of childbirth in homes, birth centers, and hospitals. We welcome the opportunity to participate in such a story. In the meantime, we urge families to focus on educating themselves to make the healthiest and safest decisions for themselves and their babies. The research clearly shows that a midwife is an excellent choice.

Sincerely,
American College of Nurse-Midwives

I was so upset with the Today Show's segment that I felt I too needed to send them my thoughts on the subject:

Good morning,

I am writing this today because I am extremely disappointed by the very apparent lack of research that went into your September 11th segment on the ‘perils of midwifery’. This segment was clearly biased towards hospital birth care and failed to provide any data or perspective from the side of midwifery/homebirth other than to imply (quite offensively) that couples choosing natural birth are ‘extreme’ or are following ‘fashionable trends’. And while my heart goes out to the couple featured in the segment, I believe this was an extreme example to use, and it was obvious that their story was clearly abused in order to create an emotional, sensationalized segment that I find offensively irresponsible for a major news media outlet such as yours to broadcast.

My wife and I chose to have our baby in a local birth center after much research and investigation. After all the information was gathered, we felt it was a safe and wise alternative to a drug-induced and surgery prone hospital birth. We were not driven by trend, but by careful informed self-education on the subject, and I again find it highly offensive to imply that our informed choice to not have my wife and our baby exposed to unnecessary drugs or surgery during birth is a reckless, trendy, and dangerous choice.

I expect the Today show will show better due diligence in future stories (at the least), and I think that your show owes a huge apology to hard-working and educated midwives throughout the world that routinely assist parents who make a choice not to birth in a ‘traditional’ hospital setting. We are preparing for our baby’s birth in November, and I look forward to sharing what we anticipate to be an amazing birth center experience with you.

Yours,

Jonathan R Walters
Orlando, FL

To prospective mothers and fathers about to have a baby or thinking about having a baby soon, just remember- YOU HAVE A CHOICE! I'm not going to say that home birth or the use of a birth center is for everyone, but you owe it to both you and your child to at least become informed on the differences between hospitals and home or birth center birthing.

Don't let so-called 'journalists' like those working for the Today show form your opinion for you. Take the time out to do the research and learn the facts. Your child is too important to not do so.

For those interested, the following are some excellent online resources for those interested in midwifery, home birthing and natural birth:

http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com/
http://betterbirth.blogspot.com/
http://www.hypnobirthing.com/
http://www.mybestbirth.com/
http://www.pregnantinamerica.com/