bagelh

I agree that no decision is ever final - in fact home births are always planned on a contingency that you may have to be admitted to the labour ward for whatever reason - even if it is last minute nerves. However the suggestion above was that you should deliberately mislead your primary care team about your intentions, which is what I was objecting to. My first birth was a home birth supported by on-call' St Thomas's midwifes who were excellent, and who I hadn't met before - and as Asset points out, it didn't matter a great deal I hadn't met them, I just wanted to get the baby out! The two midwifes stayed past their shift, as it ended up being a long drawn out affair, and they supported us through the next week with more home visits which we really appreciated. The Brierly and other home birth teams do not represent a 'system', they are hard working, dedicated group of women who are motivated by the desire to provide supported, positive births - the relationship works because it is based on mutual respect and trust. If this is broken for whatever reason - people playing the system or whatever - it shatters the whole basis and understanding behind one-one care in the first place. Thats not to say you can't be honest about not being completely sure about a home birth - no-one expects 100% certainty out of pregnant women! But if you are honest, all for the better, as it means they can offer you the best care and support that is appropriate.

I have just had my second home birth, this time with the Brierly, and I can confirm all the excellent things that have been said about them. I would also recommend wholeheartedly having your baby at home, if you have no complications and think your personal surroundings are going to be most conducive to a positive experience. By definition, all home births are 'safe' as no birth with any remote possibility of complication is ever allowed to continue there or start there in the first place. The Brierly, like the Oakwood, Albany and Southbank teams in Southwark are all what is called 'caseloader' teams of midwifes that support couples in the community to have home births. You can be referred to them by your GP, or you contact them directly. It means that you are more likely to have the support and care of the same midwife, or from the same team, through your pregnancy and then during your labour. One to one continuity of care is recommended as by far the best for pregnant women by health experts. Although home births seem counter intuitive to some - it is worth looking into the statistics and surrounding literature about them as they could be the option that is best for you. However, when one of the Brierly midwifes told me people on this forum were recommending to lie to their GPs and the Brierly about wanting a homebirth in order to secure personal one-one care throughout pregnancy and then opt for a hospital birth, I couldn't quite believe how cynical someone could be and yet here it is below - and it is repeated in the other posts on private birth threads. Apart from the fact that it is not true, and if you suddenly 'change your mind' as suggested below you will be referred back to Kings, (and in doing so, as another contributor has pointed out, deprive someone who genuinely wants a planned home birth) it is also incredibly bad advice to any pregnany woman trying to plan a safe, confident and optimistic birth. What a pity, I really hope nobody on this forum would seriously consider such a suggestion, and I know that the Brierly team are pretty disappointed that such so called 'advice' is being circulated. Bagelh dulwichmum Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > You can get referred to the Brierley Midwives > through your GP. They will usually only refer you > if you are sure you want a home birth - so tell > the GP that you are - and later change your mind.