Potential new birth center

[Karen Davis]

From a homeschool list:

OT: the Carolina Community Maternity Center
Posted by: "Erika" [e-mail] geberika
Mon Feb 23, 2009 6:03 am (PST)
Hi all,

I just want to let everyone know that several local midwives in SC are
working together to start a non-profit birth center to serve the women
of Charlotte and Ft. Mill. We found a really fabulous location (521
near 160, right across the border in Ft. Mill) and now we just need to
raise the funds, and get our supplies! Here is our website with more
info. We are planning events for Mother's Day, and we are planning our
Grand Opening on Labor Day (get it?).

http://carolinabirth.org

Right now our biggest needs are funds and supplies, so if you have any
extra money, or know someone who does, or have any extra supplies, we
could use them! We have pending 501(c)(3) status so all donations will
be tax-exempt.

I just know that the CCMC is going to be such a gift to the women of
Charlotte and Ft. Mill!

[Pat]

Thanks for posting this!

I want to actively encourage any mamas passionate about natural birth to consider donating $25 (or more!) toward the Birth Center. If each person who loves birth, could contribute a bit, together we can help the Birth Center to open by Labor Day, 2009! They have an amazing facility space leased; and there are several birth advocates, including licensed midwives who are going to be supporting *natural* births at the Birth Center. All certified, licensed and approved by the state of South Carolina.

We didn't have this option when I was pregnant, and I know Scott would have been more comfortable with a Birth Center than staying home. And I would have been more comfortable with a Birth Center than going to the hospital. So, I'm passionate about seeing the Birth Center get off the ground, and become a vital part of our community.

The C-section rate in the Charlotte region has been escalating with local OBs not allowing midwives to support VBACs. The repeat cesarean rate for low-risk women of all ages and racial groups is now 88.7%. http://www.jfponline.com/Pages.asp?AID=3853 Although, 60 to 80 percent of women who attempt VBAC, can. The issue of repeat cesarean deliveries is of concern, because delivery of a baby by C-section has been linked to higher rates of complications for both mother and infant.

Another report released by the World Health Organization, the United Nations Population Fund, the U.N. Children’s Fund, the U.N. Population Division and The World Bank, and published in the Lancet shows that the U.S. has a higher maternal death rate than 40 other countries. http://labortrials.wordpress.com/2007/12/05/2006-cesarean-statistic...

SC law doesn't allow VBAC support at the Birth Center. But, the priority is for first time mamas to be empowered and safely supported to birth vaginally, to avoid the risks of repeated cesarean.

Eight years ago, when I called around to select an OB/midwife practice, I asked about their epidural rates. An epidural starts the cascade of medically induced complications, which leads away from a woman feeling empowered to have a natural birth, directly toward surgical births. No OB practice in the Charlotte region had less than a 95% epidural rate. There are no epidurals, nor C-sections in a Birth Center. :-) Hospitals have blurred the line between normal births and those that need immediate medical attention.

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that no region in the world is justified in having a cesarean rate greater than 10 to 15 percent. The NC cesarean rate was about 28% in 2004. The Mecklenburg County cesarean rate increased to 31.7% by 2007! http://www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/vitalstats/volume1/2007/mecklenbur...

British Medical Journal showed planned homebirths to have at least as good outcomes for both mothers and babies as planned hospital births, with drastically lower rates of cesarean sections (4 percent versus 19 percent) and episiotomy (2 percent versus 84 percent). The statistics were compiled from all planned homebirths in the United States in 2000 and included 5,418 women. http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A258691

Midwife-attended home births increased by 27 percent between 1996 and 2006, nationally. A routine hospital birth often can cost $8,000 to $10,000, with higher bills for cesarean section deliveries that now account for 31 percent of U.S. births. The new Birth Center will be accepting insurance. And will provide natural birth support far exceeding any options in the Charlotte regional medical centers!

The myriad of choice, from homebirth, doula support, midwifery births, and assisted births in hospital, expands the options for all births. The Birth Center is planning to support water births also. There are approximately 15,000 births in Mecklenburg County, each year. Plus another 15,000 births in the surrounding region. I hope at least 10% of those lowest-risk pregnancies could be supported outside the invasive medical facilities, with midwives trained and committed to natural birth. Safer for baby. Safer for mama. More beautiful for everyone!

Will you help to make a Birth Center a reality for the pregnant mamas in our community?

Thanks!

Pat Robinson