Do you know your local "lady who delivers babies"?

[classic33]

Delivers babies and reads tea leaves? Ah, a wisewoman AKA a witch.

Mother Shipton was never a witch!

 

[Dan B]

Please don't swallow the guff being put about by independent midwives. The insurance issues have been rumbling on for years...

You may be right about the backstory, but the latest episode where the midwives are told that "Your level of cover is insufficient" and from the same body "we can't advise you on what a sufficient level of cover looks like" - granted that whenever I hear "we can't advise you" I have a sneaking suspicion that FCA rules are in some way involved, but even so I can't help feeling that this is not really a terribly constructive stance.

If you have any actual data on what the claims history looks like, I'd be very interested to read it

 

[slowmotion]

These people are pretty reliable round here....

 

[raleighnut]

 

[Pale Rider]

[QUOTE 4649585, member: 45"]My gran used to say that when she was younger there was always a local woman, whatever street you lived in, that your husband went to fetch when you went into labour, and she would take charge of delivery.
[/QUOTE]

I can offer some confirmation of that interesting slice of social history.

Years ago, I spoke to an elderly woman - now dead - who told me every north east pit village had a woman who took charge of baby deliveries.

Experience was her only qualification.

Babies are not my thing, but I gather nearly every birth now takes place in hospital.

I am the youngest of three and the only one to have been delivered in hospital, my two older brothers were both born at home.

Coming from a farming background may be relevant.

My mother - and those around her - would have routinely supervised the birth of piglets, lambs, calves and foals.

One live birth, I suppose, is much like another.

 

[Cubist]

This issue has been rumbling on for years - I can remember discussing it 15 plus years ago and the requirement only came in 2 1/2 years ago (July 2014). It's an NMC rather than a FCA issue.

The fundamental issue is that many independent midwives cannot get indemnity cover at a level that is sufficient to meet the level of awards being made for birth issues, given how devastating they can be or which cover the subsequent `NHS costs. Midwives working for the NHS are covered by the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts and those working for NHS-commissioned care (e.g. The One to One Midwife programme) have employer provided cover as part of the contract with the NHS.

As with other clinicians, such as doctors and nurses, midwives should have indemnity insurance to cover private practice (which is what independent midwifery is) but some of them don't always have an adequate level of cover. The reason for this is because the risks are very high (just look at what obstetricians and paediatricians have to pay as premiums) and the potential awards are enormous - insurers don't want the risk.

There is evidence, although I have to admit that I don't have it hand, that the claims/complications rates are higher for independent midwives than those in the NHS and that's often because of the way they work.

The NHS also spends large amounts of money, often hundreds of thousands of pounds, picking up the pieces when things go wrong. It usually can't recover those costs, whereas it could from other clinicians in private practice.

I have nothing against independent midwifery - but mothers to be should have the reassurance that if something does go wrong the person they have entrusted their care to has sufficient indemnity to cover the often huge costs for lifetime care.

Cool story bro........

 

[ufkacbln]

[QUOTE 4649618, member: 45"]Money-lending?[/QUOTE]

Too posh an area......... but there may be some poorer types down the road, must investigate, then refer to the other thread to employ an enforcer

 

[ufkacbln]

Delivers babies and reads tea leaves? Ah, a wisewoman AKA a witch.

She turned me into a Newt

 

[ufkacbln]

[QUOTE 4649657, member: 45"]Just someone who'll ask for towels and hot water, and catch the baby in her house coat.[/QUOTE]

I believe that the Scottish NHS uses Irn Bru....

 

[lutonloony]

we don't even have anybody that delivers newspapers

 

[roadrash]

She turned me into a Newt

but you got better

 

[Globalti]

Do we really need wise women to deliver babies when everything's on Youtube nowadays?

 

[jefmcg]

[QUOTE 4650046, member: 45"]https://www.youtube.com/shared?ci=a9TJywicxMo[/QUOTE]
I had a friend who gave birth in the ambulance on the way to hospital. To comfort her, the paramedics told her "this isn't bad. a couple of years ago, a baby was born in the carpark of the hospital" "That was me!" she answered.

On the upside, nice short labours.

Edit: that is a horrible video. "We did it"? No, she did and he filmed it.

 

[Markymark]

Listing to The Bugle podcast some years ago, Andy ended up delivering his baby as time ran out getting to hospital. On phoning the hospital for what was expected to be a step by step account of a how to deliver process, the advice (paraphrasing due to time) was, "Everything will just happen fine, just don't drop it"

 

[Cubist]

Which brings me neatly to the joke about the bloke who rings the ambulance to say his wife's waters have broken, and contraction are now very close together.
"What is your address please?"
"17 Yew Tree Avenue"
"Can you spell that please?"
"Yes, it's E-w-e, errr no, hang on....err Y-o-u.....oh wait.... oh bugger it, I'll drag her round the corner to Oak Lane."