Expectant mother "furious" at home birth decision

Friday 11 March 2022

A mother who'd planned to have a home birth in June said she is “furious” by the States’ decision to discontinue the midwife-assisted home birth service.

Kirsten Hieghton-Jackson, who had a home birth previously, is pregnant with her second child.

“I feel completely betrayed," she said.

Ms Hieghton-Jackson spoke to Express after the Committee for Health & Social Care announced last week that the midwife-supported home birth service would not be reintroduced, after it was suspended during the covid-19 pandemic. 

Pictured: Ms Hieghton-Jackson's son was born at home.

The Committee said that supporting a single birth at home requires two of the five community midwives to be on-call 24 hours a day for up to five weeks at a time. 

“The covid-19 excuse was an unfounded excuse to not offer women sufficient birth support; now that they [The Committee for Health and Social Care] have admitted it’s about a government constructed staffing shortage, we can call a spade a spade; women’s rights do not matter to the Guernsey government,” said Ms Hieghton-Jackson. 

“If the Government cared about women’s rights then they would hire more midwives.”

However, a spokesperson for the Committee for Health and Social Care said the decision was made to prioritise delivering hospital services.

“We want to make absolutely clear that there have been no budget or staff cuts in midwifery services,” they said. 

Pictured: Ms Hieghton-Jackson after giving birth to her son at home.

“The on-call requirement to guarantee a home birth service would be disproportionately demanding of the midwives, in addition to their working hours. It could negatively impact on the work/life balance needed to support their wellbeing," said the Committee. 

“Maternity services are unpredictable; therefore, we have to prioritise safely staffing our core community and hospital services."

There have been approximately 15 planned homebirths in the last five years in Guernsey.

Pictured: Most babies in Guernsey are born on Loveridge Ward at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital. 

The Committee said midwives supported the decision to discontinue the service. 

“Prior to making this decision, we consulted with the Maternity Voices service user chair and their deputy.

“We also engaged with the Royal College of Midwives, who are supportive of the decision,” they said. 

“The on-call requirement to guarantee a home birth service would be disproportionately demanding of the midwives, in addition to their working hours. 

“It could negatively impact on the work/life balance needed to support their wellbeing.”

Pictured: Midwives have supported the decision to remove the midwife-supported home birth service. 

Another expectant mother, who wished to remain anonymous, was disappointed by the decision. 

“I am due to have a baby at the end of June and the decision to take away home births as an option in Guernsey is very disappointing,” she said. 

“In the UK, women have the option to have home births, to go to a birth centre or to have their children in hospital.

“After reading several books promoting positive choice for one of the most important moments of your life, it is very upsetting that there isn’t a choice at all in Guernsey.”

The Committee said it could not offer limitless options. 

“While we want to offer as much choice as possible in all our services, homebirths have historically been supported on a 'best endeavours' basis.

“It is not something we have ever been able to guarantee, due to the small size of our midwifery resource."

Pictured: The Committee for Health and Social Care said it will provide a "home from home" environment. 

“We remain committed to provide choice, but it cannot be limitless," said the Committee.

“We are passionate about providing the best birth experience for all our service users, including a 'home from home' environment and swift discharge from Loveridge Ward if all is well so that parents and their new-born can return home as soon as possible.”

Ms Hieghton-Jackson believes home births are “arguably safer” than hospital births.

“Home births are arguably safer for low-risk pregnancies because hospital interventions interfere with the natural birthing process and tend to lead to further interventions which increase the risk of c-section and any time you have surgery there is a risk of death

Pictured: The Committee for Health and Social Care said maintaining core services in the hospital was a priority.

The Committee said no birth is completely risk-free.

“We would also caution against a narrative suggesting home births are safer than deliveries in hospital,” they said. 

“Nothing is risk-free, and our focus is on providing high-quality services on Loveridge Ward as the data shows that this is where the vast majority of women choose to give birth.” 

READ MORE...

HSC is "very sorry" to drop support for homebirths