[MadameXCupcake]

I really thought a lot of countries were homebirth friendly. I recently read a thread about France and another about Romania and I now see both of those are not homebirth friendly.
Is there a list somewhere of midwife/homebirth friendly countries?

I know this is stereotyping but I really thought a country like Romania would be okay with homebirths. Well I thought most countries were!! When did homebirth end in these other countries? around the same time as the US? It seems everyone says the US is alone in its non-use of home birth midwives but now it seems this is not the case. I will try and google more but any information or links is appreciated! TIA

 

[AutumnAir]

I live in Europe. Yes, there seems to be the attitude that all Europeans are supportive of homebirth, but it's not true. It really depends on the country.
For example, the Czech Republic, where I'm living now, is extremely unsupportive of homebirth. The Netherlands, of course, is very supportive. The UK is quite supportive in that you can get a homebirth within the system, the same way you get a hospital birth, though it is more difficult to organise as they have a shortage of HB MWs. Ireland, where I'm from, used to be pretty anti-homebirth. Then recently they realised that it was much cheaper to pay for a homebirth than a hospital one, so now it's becoming more popular. They also have a huge shortage of public midwives who can attend HB, but they do offer to pay part of the price for a private midwife if necessary.
Those are the only countries I have any direct experience or knowledge about.

 

[DaisyMay]

Uk varies from area to area - I had my first in Berkshire and it was very supportive and well set-up for homebirth. My sister had her first up in Scotland and they were a bit more reluctant for a first baby, but she got it in the end and I think the NHS are obliged to provide care to mom no matter where she chooses to give birth. It's becoming much more normal and accepted.

 

[etoilech]

Switzerland is home birth friendly. You have a right to a home birth and have it paid by general insurance, midwives have the autonomy to practice without fear and have the support and cooperation local medical services.

Uk is pretty good as well, but yymv depending on where you live, BUT you are entitled to a homebirth on the NHS.

Sweden is not as homebirth friendly as one might think especially in certain areas.

Germany isn't bad as far as I've experienced.

 

[pantufla]

My sister had a homebirth (paid for by the NHS) in Holland. The only other European country I have contact with is Spain, and I have no idea what their stance is -- the people I've known who had babies there had them in the hospital. My impression of the medical system in Spain in general is that it tends to be very interventionist, but like I said, I don't know anything specific to the birth culture.

 

[MujerMamaMismo]

New Zealand provides publicly funded homebirths.

 

[rabbitmum]

Norway is homebirth friendly, and midwives to attend homebirths are paid for by the state. You also receive a small sum (part of what you save the state by not having a hospital birth) if you have a baby at home or anywhere else not in a hospital. The Norwegian Princess Märtha recently had her third homebirth.

:

Homebirths are nowhere near as common here as in the Netherlands or even the UK, though.

 

[MadameXCupcake]

Thank you so much.
I hadn't realized other countries were into the hospital approach as much as the US. I enjoyed reading your answers and am now a bit surprised by the idea that the US is alone in its intervention/hospital friendly attitude.

 

[member234098]

Denmark?

 

[Limabean1975]

I'm not sure about other parts of Canada, but I think Ontario is quite HB-friendly. Midwives are covered completely by our provincial health care and when with a midwife, you simply choose whether you want home or hospital (no freestanding birth centres here). Even a midwife-attended hospital birth can be quite "homebirthy" - my first was a midwife-attended hospital birth, and the hospital really had nothing to do with it. It was just a location - we could just as easily have been in a hotel room (that happened to have a heat lamp & pediatric scale and a handful of free postpartum mama-diapers!).

 

[Quindin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by miriam Denmark?

Yes
I lived there, and though I did not have homebirths while living there (I was too young and scared...

) people were for it.
It is not most women who opt for it, but birth with midwives with NO intervention or pain meds is standard.
More people are opting for "Ambulant Foedsel" which means going home just a few hours after the baby is born because they don't see any reason to stay in the hospital.

Quote:

Originally Posted by lisabeeprague The UK is quite supportive in that you can get a homebirth within the system, the same way you get a hospital birth, though it is more difficult to organise as they have a shortage of HB MWs.

I am in the UK now
Had a homebirth last Christmas and I am planning my second homebirth for this baby
Yes, you can get a homebirth 100% paid by the government.
According to the government, it is the right of the woman to give birth wherever she wishes.
Having said that, you need to prepare yourself to FIGHT for your right and stand up against bullying.
Even though I supposedly live in one of the most homebirth friendly areas, I was told on a regular basis how I did not "qualify" for a homebirth because of a bunch of reasons. And I had to keep repeating that I did not have to receive their permission, that I had done my homework and that I would have a homebirth.
Up to the very hour I was in labour and my husband called for the midwife, the hospital kept insisting they would not send anybody because they did not have anybody to send

When my husband reminded them that they knew all along that I would be giving birth at home and that having back up staff was their problem, not ours, 2 midwives appeared like magic

It is a shame that most women here don't know their right and end up NOT having a homebirth because of the fear mongering and bullying... *sigh*

 

[Haselnuss]

I've been wondering how pro-homebirth Germany is - from what I've been able to find, it seems slightly (but only slightly) better than the US - 2% rather than 1% of births at home, I believe. The Germans I know seem a bit more open-minded about the idea than Americans generally are, a look through a homebirth-midwife search site gave the impression that it isn't too terribly difficult to find one there, and my German DF seems to think health insurance covers homebirths... but I'm not 100% sure on this. It is, however, a far cry from the assumptions about HB being the norm in Europe - hospital birth is clearly considered the default.

 

[rabbitmum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Haselnuss It is, however, a far cry from the assumptions about HB being the norm in Europe - hospital birth is clearly considered the default.

That's very true, but a hospital birth here is, generally speaking, very different from a hospital birth in the US. Which might be why not so many are choosing a home birth - which we do have the option to choose.

 

[etoilech]

Hospital births here is only marginally better than in the USA. The big difference is generally midwives are in charge of you unless an issue arises. The situation is getting worse in many hospitals IMO.

 

[the_lissa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Limabean1975 I'm not sure about other parts of Canada, but I think Ontario is quite HB-friendly. Midwives are covered completely by our provincial health care and when with a midwife, you simply choose whether you want home or hospital (no freestanding birth centres here). Even a midwife-attended hospital birth can be quite "homebirthy" - my first was a midwife-attended hospital birth, and the hospital really had nothing to do with it. It was just a location - we could just as easily have been in a hotel room (that happened to have a heat lamp & pediatric scale and a handful of free postpartum mama-diapers!).

Yes. B.C., Manitoba, and I think Alberta now are the same.

 

[dziwozony]

while homebirth is in the minority here in New Zealand, the government still fully funds it! they also pay travel costs for my MW to come to my home for appointments, so i never even have to visit a hospital or clinic throughout my pregnancy if i don't want to. i am free to choose my MW & i also get 6 weeks of postpartum check ups in my home!

i am from the US, so am still incredibly impressed by all of this. the hospital has the attitude that US hospitals do...high intervention...& most women still go there because the general public holds onto that belief that homebirths are dangerous & blah, blah, blah. so the mainstream attitude is not homebirth friendly, but the options available surely are!

 

[Melian]

The Netherlands! The midwives are funded by the insurance companies, and you get the option of either a hospital birth or a home birth. As stated before a hospital birth is very different from an American hospital birth. The midwife stays with you the entire time and 2-3 hours after delivery you can go home. I chose a home birth, and although the percentage of homebirthers is declining here, had a wonderful experience! I would totally do it again!

 

[AlexisT]

The UK varies massively. My SIL lives in an area with a 10% HB rate and they're very supportive. I lived in an area with an 0.5% HB rate, and they would do whatever they could to stop you, from what I heard.

France is very anti-home birth, though it's legal. I've heard some pretty bad stories about giving birth in France--very interventionist, lots of out of date advice about breastfeeding ("it's bad to feed them more than every 3 hours")