June 4, 2003 – A new study confirms the benefits of birth centers for women whose pregnancies are progressing normally.
About 3,000 women took part in a study1 conducted by American researchers. They discovered that in the case of a low-risk pregnancy, a birth in a birthing center that takes place under the joint supervision of an obstetrician, a nurse and a midwife is just as safe. than a delivery in a hospital.
In particular, researchers were able to establish that births in a birth center were less likely to require medical intervention. Thus, in a birth center, 15% more women had a spontaneous vaginal birth than in a hospital, and 23% less of them needed an episiotomy.
When studying the location of birthing centers in the province, the Quebec government noted that certain problems could be reduced thanks to the type of supervision offered by these centers, including prematurity and the births of babies. of small weight. Other studies even go so far as to state that in the case of normal pregnancies, the mortality rate is lower in the birth center than in the hospital.2.
Recently, the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières awarded their diplomas to the first nine graduates of their bachelor’s degree in midwifery practice.
Jean-Benoit Legault – PasseportSanté.net
According to Health News; May 30, 2003.
1. Jackson DJ, Lang JM, Swartz WH, Ganiats TG, Fullerton J, Ecker J, Nguyen U. Outcomes, Safety, and Resource Utilization in a Collaborative Care Birth Center Program Compared With Traditional Physician-Based Perinatal Care.Am J Public Health 2003 Jun; 93 (6): 999-1006. [Consulté le 4 juin 2003].
2. Viossat P, Pons JC. Birthing centers: review of the literature.J Gynecol Obstet Biol Reprod (Paris) 2001 Nov; 30 (7 Pt 1): 680-7. [Consulté le 4 juin 2003].
