Midwife accepts plea deal, the birth debate rages

No this isn't a debate about whether we have really seen the President's birth certificate or not. XD
washingtonpo st.com

Karen Carr, the well-known Baltimore midwife whose prosecution in connection with an Alexandria baby’s death triggered a passionate debate about home births, was convicted of two felonies yesterday in Alexandria Circuit Court.

This case has spurred a debate on whether people should be allowed to home birth or not. It is tinged with colors of the abortion debates.

On one hand, you should be able to choose where and how you have your child. On the other, you should gaurentee the child's safety.
Does it give the medical community too much power to require you to give birth in a hospital setting?

Or should you be allowed to risk a homebirth as you see fit?
This is in no way to slander the wonderful work of actual licensed, dedicated midwives.

I wonder why, if she was licensed in another state, why she wouldn't have had the baby delivered there, or gotten the license for the state she was delivering in? And neither article states who brought the charges, the parents or the state?
Anywho, I think it is the mothers right to choose where and how to have a baby. If I could do it over again, I would have my boys at home. But I was lucky and had fast deliveries, 1 to fast for drugs!

Reply to post by nixie_nox

Hmm…

I thought a woman had privacy rights, and the right to do what she wants saith her body and the body growing inside of her.


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reply to post by Lemon.Fresh


But the second that child is born, you are responsible for the welfare of that child. That is where it gets tricky. A trained midwife knows when to call for help. Or many keep practises near hospitals.

You cannot give birth the way God/nature intended
Your God/nature given right to parent the way you see fit is being taken away.
You can no longer decide how you want to live freely.
Anything natural or as nature intended is now almost criminal.
Its all good! We no longer have to make decisions! They have all been or will soon be made for you!
Because there is apparently something wrong with mother nature and free will. Didnt you people get the memo?

(dripping with sarcasm)

A question, were the parents also charged? I mean it was ultimately their decision. Do we fault someone for trying to assist where the parents would have had a homebirth one way or another?

Originally posted by nixie_nox
On one hand, you should be able to choose where and how you have your child. On the other, you should gaurentee the child's safety.

Does it give the medical community too much power to require you to give birth in a hospital setting?

Or should you be allowed to risk a homebirth as you see fit?
This is in no way to slander the wonderful work of actual licensed, dedicated midwives.

There is no contest here. If hospitals were shown to be have a higher mortality rate than home-births, we all know it wouldn't become illegal to bring a pregnant mother to a hospital for birth. And we all know nobody would suggest that start happening. There will always be twisted control freaks using scare stories to get their crazy plans enacted.

The fact is unless you know with complete certainty an infant is going to be harmed by its parents you have no right to interfere with what their parents are doing and would certainly be a criminal to do so.

reply to post by showintail


Good question.

Now I am inclined to go with you need a medical professional on hand in order to give birth, where possible.
But then if I wasn't in the hospital, my baby would of died. I had a completely healthy, uncomplicated pregnancy.
If you have had any issues before, you should be required to give birth in a hospital.

I do believe the parents should be held responsible. They should of had a backup plan. And this is regarding people having a normal delivery, not the woman who goes into labor and starts having a baby in the back of a cab in only ten minutes.

reply to post by nixie_nox

I agree. I had all 7 of mine at the hospital. 5 were induced. Those were the only time I was threatened with a c section lol. I had all 7 naturally with drugs except 1. Labor and delivery was 1 hour with her, labor so horrible I cried for the epi. Anestisialigist (sp) was still in the room, lol.

I am very happy the hospital is there, because labor and delivery is unpredictable. Anything can happen. A backup plan to a homebirth is really important. I really like hospitals that allow midwives to practice there. And I feel it is a happy medium that should be implemented more.

People need to see the documentary called "The business of being born". It's quite the eye opener. OB has become a dangerous business based on delivering babies in the fastest possible period of time. C sections which are dangerous and has in the past accounted for only 6-8% of all deliveries now account for (here in the US) close to 17% and rising. The reason? C sections give the OB power over when a baby gets deliveried and following with the trend here in the USA, the sacred process turns towards an assemblily line. Why should a doctor wait up to 2 days in the normal process when they can artificially induce labor through questionable medications and steamroll the process by C section which is in the majority of cases unnecessary? See the documentary if you can.

The point of this court case is that this midwife was not licensed to practice in this state. They're not saying a mother can't give birth at home and no laws are against home births.

They're also not abolishing Midwives. Only unlicensed persons working as midwives and being paid as such without a license.

Midwifery is recognized as a medical profession, even Amish midwives are licensed by the states they reside in. There have been cases against Amish midwives from practicing medicine without a license as well;
Amish protest state crackdown on midwife