Think no one is listening to what you have to say as a birth activist? Think again.
OBGManagement.com featured an article about the recent Birth Matters Virginia video contest.
A national video contest to encourage minimal medical intervention at birth and inspire women ?to make decisions about their maternity care as carefully as they make other consumer decisions? recently named a winner: ?Prevent cesarean surgery,? a video by Ragan Cohen. The prize was a $1,000 cash award. Obstetricians may find the investment of 5 minutes to watch the video useful for understanding what some of their OB patients are thinking.
The contest was sponsored by Birth Matters Virginia, a nonprofit organization based in Richmond, Virginia, ?as a step toward our goal of educating women about their choices and options during the childbearing years,? according to the organization?s Web site, www.birthmattersva.org.
Sarah Allen-Short, the director of public relations for Birth Matters Virginia was interviewed:
The winning video cites the high cesarean section rate in the United States (roughly 32%), the risk of maternal and neonatal complication with the surgery, and the risk of future problems such as uterine rupture as arguments against medically unnecessary cesarean.
?I think cesarean birth has its place and times when it?s really a gift,? says an unidentified woman in the video, ?and it allows us to bring babies into this world that might not otherwise make it through safely, but if we choose care providers that really have faith in the natural birth process, then they will only do cesarean section if it?s really necessary for the mom and the baby.?
Allen-Short concurs with this viewpoint and points out that her organization seeks, overall, to limit the use of oxytocin, epidural analgesia, and other ?medically unnecessary? interventions.
?The more interventions involved in a labor,? she says, ?the more likely that labor will end in cesarean.?
?I hear anecdotally from doctors that a lot of women want cesareans,? she continues. It?s up to the doctor to educate patients about the risks of cesarean and to remind them that it is major surgery, Allen-Short says. ?It?s not just a teeth cleaning.?
If you’re a doctor who reads this blog, don’t be shy. Leave a comment and share your opinions on the video or childbirth advocacy in general.