It's Your Birth Right!!

I came home this evening from a great Bikram yoga class and sat down in front of my computer to read a few articles and catch up on some blog posts. I was feeling good, flexible and peaceful when I sat down. That was earlier. NOW… instead of feeling my Bikram Bliss I am fuming and there is steam coming out of my ears.  No need for the Bikram studio to get me all hot and sweaty… all I have to do is starting reading and re-reading foolishness from and about ACOG. 

It all started when I linked to an article on the Huffington Post by Louise Marie Roth…  ACOG Up to Dirty Tricks. She wrote a great piece about the recent tactics ACOG is using to undermine women and their right to birth at home. 

For some reason I decided to go to the ACOG website after reading the article to see if there was some way I, could hack into their system. Yea RIGHT… I knew that would not happen because I can barely host a basic blog. I also knew that I could see a screenshot of the survey “Complications Related to Home Delivery” by going to The Unnecesarean.com but I wanted to see something more.  (As a side note, I wonder if they will ever post a “Complications Related to Induction, or Cesarean Section Survey… probably not… but I digress)

 So I went to the ACOG website and thought maybe if I played around long enough on the site I would stumble across something…  and … in fact I did.  First I took a look at their Code of Professional Ethics; A document that they last updated/approved in January of 2008; a document that sounds real good on paper but is apparently hard for them to put into practice. With only a brief read of the document, I found glaring discrepancies. 

Let me give a couple of examples…  In the Ethical Foundation section of the code ACOG states that “The respect for the right of individual patients to make their own choices about their health care (autonomy) is fundamental.”  Time and again we hear about, and personally witness, situations when a woman’s personal autonomy is completely ripped away.  We saw a blatant example of this a little more than a week ago when they put forth their statement about drinking fluids in labor.  The press release from The Big Push said it best …  “Displaying a stunning lack of regard for patient autonomy, the American college of Obstetricians and Gynecologist (ACOG) issued a statement this week declaring that the group will ‘allow’ laboring women to drink ‘modest amounts’ of clear fluids during labor while continuing to prohibit access to solid food.”

In the Code of Conduct section it states “The obstetrician-gynecologist should serve as the patient’s advocate and exercise all reasonable means to ensure that the most appropriate care is provided to the patient.”   This would mean that the women who are low risk (which is most women) would receive a midwifery model of care which we know is NOT happening in the real world.

If the leadership of ACOG and much of its membership was truly acting on behalf of mother and infants, out of concern, desiring the best possible outcomes, I would not be so angry.  If statistics showed that eating in labor was unsafe, or that a medical model of maternity care with more inductions, interventions and cesareans was better I would be saying “right on.”  The reality however is quite the opposite.

In my estimation, it is no coincidence that during the same year the two best studies to date, documenting the safety of homebirth are published, ACOG pulls this rabbit out of their trick bag in attempts to derail the current home birth movement.  It is shameful that in a time as crucial as this in our country… as we talk about health care reform and improving birth outcomes…  ACOG, “a membership organization dedicated to the advancement of women’s health care through continuing medical education, practice and research” would stoop to such lows.

And… where are they getting their research information from anyway. They obviously haven’t read the recent study from Canada showing once again that home birth for low risk women is SAFE with no increased risk of adverse outcomes.

Then again… maybe they have read it and they KNOW that it is safe. Perhaps they are simply scared because they are feeling the rumble of a community of women who are increasingly fed up with poor options for maternity care. They are hearing the screams of a community of sisters who are screaming “I have had enough and I am taking back my birth!!” They are afraid because while the previous birth movement could only go so far via books and word of mouth, this new movement is worldwide as in the World Wide Web, and there is no stopping it! They know that as more and more women are educated about what is really going on they will demand changes and that will affect their bottom lines soooo in an effort to save it, they are attempting to derail the movement.  

While I was perusing the ACOG website I came across an interesting tid bit to support my theory (as if it needed support.)  There was a statement under their announcement banner that states they are developing a new 501(c)(6) organization called the American CONGRESS of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.  If you are anything like me, you had no idea that there was such a thing as the CONGRESS.   Yep, they are there and not only do they exist, they have some very scary language in their strategic plan.  Approved July 11, 2009 the operational mission statement says … “The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is a membership organization dedicated to the advancement of women’s health care and the professional and socioeconomic interests of its members … (emphasis mine).  There it is, in black and white.  As I read it, I quickly had a flash back to a post on Science and Sensibility … “The Soaring Cesarean Rate: It’s the economics Stupid”

This is not rocket science. Midwifery was pushed out of maternity care as obstetrics became a more established specialty and obstetricians have fought diligently to keep their strong hold ever since. It’s a big money maker and they don’t wanna let go. Unfortunately it’s the women and children who continue to suffer.

Taking a look at one more of the bogus statements from their Code of Ethics, they have a section called societal responsibilities. The first point in this section states “The obstetrician-gynecologist should support and participate in those health care programs, practices, and activities that contribute positively, in a meaningful and cost-effective way to the welfare of individual patients, the health care system, or the public good.”  This would mean supporting midwifery; supporting The Big Push, supporting women and learning to practice the midwifery model of care.  Again words on paper with no action to support it. It’s unfortunate that with all the power they have in congress and all the lobbyist they could use to effect positive change, they are less concerned with the welfare of mothers and children and more concerned with the bottom line of its members. 

Thanks to all of the women who bombarded their website with wonderful home birth stories that caused them to run and put their survey in the password protected section of their website. The fight continues.

In Birth and Love
Nicole