Some people choose to give birth at home for various reasons, both considerations of external and internal factors. External factors, for example due to the influence of norms, culture, or religion. While internal factors are the desire to give birth in an environment that is familiar with surrounded by loved ones.
When giving birth in a hospital, the number and criteria of the person who accompanies your labor process is limited to guarding you from contamination. One of the motivations for giving birth at home is that pregnant women do not need to leave other children and do not need to be separated from their partners after giving birth. Other motivations are freedom to wear one's own clothes, take a bath, eat, drink, and move freely during labor.
Numerous studies have shown that giving birth at home is as safe as giving birth at a hospital to women who are at low risk of having labor complications and are supported by skilled midwives and hospital access support for conditions that cannot be handled at home. In addition, other studies have shown that mothers with low-risk pregnancies who give birth at home tend to need less medical intervention, such as episiotomy and caesarean section, compared with mothers with low-risk pregnancies who deliver at the hospital.
However, it turns out that not all pregnant women are safe to give birth at home because there are still things that need to be fulfilled, such as the following.
Have a good health condition
You can give birth at home if your pregnancy is normal and has no medical risk factors. Therefore, before deciding to give birth at home, it's a good idea to undergo a pregnancy examination. Do not force your will to give birth at home if your condition does not allow birth at home, such as:
Have had a cesarean section at previous deliveries.
Premature birth, which is the fetus's age less than 37 weeks at birth.
Postmature birth, ie the fetus is born late or is still in the womb for more than 41 weeks.
Breech baby position.
Having complications of pregnancy or preeclampsia.
Pregnant twins.
Have certain medical conditions, such as chronic hypertension, diabetes, seizure disorders and other chronic medical conditions.
If you experience one or more of the above conditions, you are advised to give birth at the hospital because in addition to being safer, there are also specialist doctors and medical facilities needed.
Not the First Time to Give Birth
If this is your first pregnancy, giving birth at home can increase your baby's risk slightly, including infant mortality and health problems that can affect a baby's quality of life in the future.
But for a second and subsequent child pregnancy, giving birth at home with good planning can run safely like having a birth at a midwife or hospital.
Assisted by Certified Midwives
Make sure your childbirth at home is handled by a certified midwife with lots of experience dealing with childbirth at home. If you choose to be assisted by a midwife, make sure the midwife is connected to a qualified doctor and the nearest hospital for emergencies. In some cases of childbirth at home with the help of a midwife, consultation with a doctor is still needed to ensure maternal and infant health.
During labor, the midwife will periodically check the pulse, body temperature, blood pressure and heart rate of the baby. After giving birth, the midwife will check whether the baby needs to be taken to the hospital or not.
Adequate availability of facilities
Consult with your doctor about what you should prepare to give birth at home. In addition, discuss what methods of delivery you choose, for example conventional methods, water birth, or other methods. The choice of this method will determine the equipment needed too, for example whether you need a pool of water or a mattress.
In addition, make sure the midwife carries the equipment needed to carry out emergency measures, such as oxygen, infusion, and medical supplies to stop postpartum bleeding.
Access to hospitals available for emergencies
Make sure that you can access the hospital that provides emergency handling services. The hospital must be equipped with 24-hour maternity care. Also make sure about the availability of transportation to take you from home to the hospital. In addition, the ideal distance and travel time from home to hospital is not more than 15 minutes. The faster the travel time, the better because your trip to the hospital makes handling delayed which can invite your safety risks.
Conditions when you or your baby need to be rushed to the hospital include:
abnormal vaginal bleeding.
stage of labor is not advanced.
prolapse of the umbilical cord or umbilical cord coming out of the uterus before the fetus.
the placenta is pulled from inside the uterine wall before the baby is successfully born.
after childbirth, the placenta does not come out or come out intact.
meconium, or fetal stool, appears in the amniotic fluid.
the baby shows signs of a serious condition, such as an abnormal heartbeat.
the baby has respiratory problems or signs of a medical condition.
You need to know that the choice to give birth at home has become a separate debate among experts. Taking into account the possibility of complications, some experts believe that hospitals are the most ideal place to give birth because the presence of doctors and nurses accompanied by adequate health facilities is the best step to ensure the safest delivery process.