Tina, you are SPOT ON. I don't think you have lost the plot - you are very
right.
I agree that the action of Guild and other insurers in refusing to insure
midwives is an insult to the whole midwifery profession, as well as
slanderous to the reputations of the midwives concerned. ACMI should put
aside less important issues and act to protect midwifery in Australia.
Joy Johnston
-Original Message-
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Sunday, July 08, 2001 10:26 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED];
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject:Re: Homebirths in Peril and Midwifery Insurance
In a message dated 7/07/01 12:30:35 PM AUS Eastern Standard Time,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
The article was titled Home births in peril as midwives lose insurance
cover. It keeps sending out that same message about fear, danger and
litigation around birth.
What do homebirth midwives intend to do??
Sue Cookson
Homebirth Australia
Hi all ozmider's.
This situation distresses me greatly. As I see it, the problem is the huge
lack of recognition and respect for midwifery as an autonomous profession,
which I believe has far reaching implications for ALL women and midwives -
not just MIPP and the homebirth community. The homebirth movement here is
still considered a radical, questioning and an independent movement outside
of medical control and its always been a thorn in the obstetric side and
subject to a great deal of attention, scrutiny and anticompetitive
behaviour.
Historically we know that many of the improvements in maternity care have
been born from the homebirth movement. So for all other midwives to then
hide
their heads in the sand on this issue and to shrug it off as something that
only affects homebirth midwives and their clients is a HUGE mistake.
Homebirth needs to exist for the benefit of ALL, not just the few that
choose
it, because out of this movement we have another model by which to compare
the obstetric model, and measures by which to demand greater accountability
from medical men and their machines and evidence for continued improvements
for mainstream maternity care. Once you recognise this it becomes apparent
that the withdrawal of professional indemnity insurance from MIPP is just
the
tip of the iceberg and actually represents the largest assault on the
autonomy of midwifery this country has seen and THIS THEN AFFECTS ALL
MIDWIVES AND ALL WOMEN - NOT JUST THE HOMEBIRTH COMMUNITY.
Midwives please open your eyes and look 'outside of the square you live in'
and see the bigger picture !!! By insurers denying/refusing to insure
midwives in private practice, is to effectively, slam the door shut on
midwifery as an autonomous profession in this country, relegating midwifery
to be forever controlled by the medical fraternity. This has ripple effects
into EVERY other facet of midwifery practice. It will eventually effect
EVERY
MIDWIFE in her capacity to work as a midwife 'with woman' as it effectively
undermines EVERY midwife's status and claim to autonomous practice as the
health care professional that she is, irrespective of where she provides
midwifery care. Further more, while the majority of midwives may work in
hospitals and have their liability underwritten by state governments, many
midwives also choose to have PI outside of this as well - independent of
their employers interests! So to argue that this is an issue that just
effects 80 midwives and the 1% of women who choose to birth at home in this
country is just ridiculous and will surely then see the demise of midwifery
in this country.
This issue needs to be brought to the forefront and dealt with once and for
all. The ACMI needs to gather ALL its constituents together with their
greatest allies - women - and demand to be heard in the halls of
parliament,
news and media until the powers that be listen and cotton on to the great
conspiracy that is denying Australian women and their families the right to
choose for themselves how, where and with whom they birth their children.
Furthermore, midwives need to put their money where their mouths are and
get
serious about their professional representation. This is not meant to be a
criticism of the ACMI as it stands, but rather to say that, it can only do
so
much with the resources and limited personnel that it has. The College
needs
funds to invest in a good lawyer who can research these issues from the
point
of law and justice, and funds to undertake through risk analysis of
providing
midwifery care. How can the College continue to argue for what is right and
just - without the evidence to support it. Insurance companies would find
it
difficult to refuse policy applications or charge outrageous premiums, if
the
evidence was there in black and white to sink their arguments that
midwifery
is a highly litigious area. The College should be demanding proof of that
statement by
