NEWS RELEASE September 28, 2005
Obstetricians stoop to scare mongering

Australia's leading maternity consumer group, Maternity Coalition, is disgusted that obstetricians have resorted to scare mongering in an attempt to retain control of childbirth. National President of Maternity Coalition said, "Childbirth belongs to women and babies - midwives, general practitioners and obstetricians are there to support and assist them during this highly significant and intimate life event. "The major stakeholders in any discussion regarding childbirth are women and this seems to have been forgotten. We need to ask women what they want in order to feel safe, who they want to look after them, how they want to give birth, and the degree of control they want to have over their births. "We do not accept the statement by Dr Pesce that babies born in midwife led centres are more likely to die during or shortly after birth, compared with babies born in major hospitals. Dr Pesce has chosen to incite fear in what is a blatant manipulation of research. This is unacceptable. "The research referred to does not identify a trend that can be interpreted as a statistical difference between midwife or obstetric assisted births. "Maternity Coalition would like to reassure women who have chosen midwife led care that they are in safe hands and to disregard this attempt to scare them." More Australian women are demanding the services of midwives to get the kind of maternity care they want and need at this important stage in life. Why? Because midwives have the knowledge, skills, expertise and time to provide birthing women with the support they need so the mother and baby get the best start in their new life together.

Leslie Arnott
National President Maternity Coalition
PH (03) 9817 3118 or 0412 707 001