Re: VBAC help

[L & D Staff]

Dear Tania - Andrea mentioned on the list that Selangor had a 100% VBAC rate for the last year - it is for the past 6 months, but the previous 6 months it was 85%. I know it is difficult to fond support for VBAC - not just in QLD either - this was an issue highlighted all around the country when Andrea and I did the Celebrating Midwifery tour in the past couple of weeks. Many midwives are feeling powerless and helpless to support women to achieve their desire for a vaginal birth following caesarean.   Andrea spoke on the tour of a series of workshops to be held in August and September and one half day session will be focussed on VBAC and how midwives can help women to achieve this. Part of this is to find support from the medical profession - we all know how it influences care practices (and the word care is the importanat one here!). There are pockets of really positive work happening around the country, through the concentrated efforts of women, midwives and doctors striving to improve and "Womanise" services.   Keep plugging - you obviously have done your research - don't back down!   Regards, Lynne      ----- Original Message ----- From: Tom, Tania and Sam Smallwood To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, March 25, 2002 7:59 AM Subject: VBAC help Hi everyone,   Found this on a site I browse and lurk on, I know everyone's really busy, but I thought i'd post it here and see if anyone had any suggestions for this enterprising (and gutsy!) young woman...     I am currently trying to get into the Brisbane Birth Centre at RWH for the birth of my 3rd child who will be my 2nd natural delivery (my first child was a csec). I am currently being denied on the basis of a policy which will not allow any woman with a uterine scar (regardless of cause or subsequent obstetric history) access to the birth centre because of the risk of uterine rupture. This means that there are a group of women who have a risk of uterine rupture that varies between 0.2% (1 in 500) and 6% (6 in 100) who do not have access to the birth centre. The risk of uterine rupture is directly related to the cause of the uterine scarring, the location of the scar and subsequent obstetric history. For women such as myself who had a lower segment ceasarean and a vaginal birth since the risk is only 0.2% which is actually less than the risk of fetal distress, cord prolapse and placental abruption; all conditions that could happen to any woman in labour in the birth centre regardless of history and all of which require similar emergency action to uterine rupture. I have used this information and the fact that this policy contradicts two other policies to which RWH are signatory to develop my arguement for allowing me to the birth centre. The midwives at the birth centre have indicated they would be happy to take me (and women like me). I am yet to receive an answer from RWH. The primary reason I am writing is two fold. Firstly to find out if there are any women out there who had a VBAC (vaginal birth after caesarean) delivery in the Birth Centre (as the midwives have told me they have done some of these in the past but arn't allowed to give me names because of medical in confidence) Also to find other women who have recently been turned away from the Birth Centre because of this policy. I am aware that there has been at least one other in the past couple of weeks with a similar history to me but do not know her name. If there are also women out there who have had VBAC deliveries in other public Birth Centres in Australia I would appreciate your stories. I can be contacted at [EMAIL PROTECTED] or on this board.   The link is at http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/ubb/ubbhtml/Forum12/HTML/000355.html   Thanks in advance   Tania