HSE Homebirth with Midwives (Natural Birth)


Image Copyright: Casey-Jade Malone

Moving to a new country is a scary move for a multitude of reasons, even more so if you find out you have fallen pregnant before knowing all the ins and outs of the new system, whether it be medical, financial or otherwise. My experience of being pregnant in Ireland and giving birth here, was nothing but positive and I was incredibly happy with the service I received at the Hospital, from the wonderful midwives, from my GP and at home. Here is my story.

GP Visit

The first step when finding out you are pregnant, or might be, would be to visit your GP. I had two positive tests after I was late and phoned the GP for an appointment. She felt it was not necessary to conduct further tests and registered me on the Maternity and Infant Care Scheme. MY local hospital was the The National Maternity Hospital (NMH) on Holles Street in Dublin, as we live in the South of Dublin.

A few days later I phoned NMH to make an appointment with the midwives of the Domino Scheme as my GP and I agreed that it was a low-risk pregnancy and my previous birth was normal (ie not caesarean) – this meant my pregnancy care would come from the midwives and my GP, (and not a consultant/obstetrician). I was also very happy to proceed with the Domino scheme as it meant I would not have to travel into Dublin for my appointments but that my care would alternate between the midwives 2km away and my GP down the street.

Halfway into my pregnancy at one of my appointments with the midwives, I was asked where I wanted to give birth. I explained to the midwife that my eldest was born in an Active Birth Unit (at Femina Hospital in Pretoria) and that I really liked the setup, and that I was not very keen on a hospital setting. She urged me to consider a homebirth as it would be the closest to what I previously experienced. She also advised that if I chose to go ahead with a homebirth, I could change my mind at any time and give birth at the hospital. But, if I did not go through the administration of having a homebirth, I could not later change my mind as the administration for a homebirth would not have been done in time. I opted for a home birth and got the registration under way. More on this later.

Appointments

My appointments were every couple of weeks with either my GP or one of the Midwives at the HSE Centre in Leopardstown. I only had to phone for the first appointment with the midwives, thereafter the next date was booked when I attended the appointment. I had to phone my GP to make an appointment each time but this is only because the receptionist makes appointments, not the doctors.

At the appointments with the midwives, I saw a different midwife every time. At first, this was a bit worrisome to me as I felt I wanted to build a relationship with a midwife so I would know the person who would deliver my baby. This feeling did not last long, as every midwife who saw me, was absolutely fantastic. Each was more gentle than the previous, more knowledgeable, more caring, friendlier.  I couldn’t decide who I would have liked to be at my birth the most! It was new to be feeling like this over ladies whom I have only met once. I was excited to see who would be working the day I went into labour, and I knew there was no way I would be disappointed.

At the GP appointments, the doctor did a urine test every time, checked the heartbeat and did a blood pressure test. This was the same with all my appointments with the midwives except for the last few, when they started measuring my tummy as well to make sure the baby’s growth was on track.

At each appointment, both the GP and midwives asked me how I was feeling and whether I had any complaints. I felt comfortable to raise any concerns which were happily dealt with.  

At around 20 weeks I had the Anomaly Scan at NMH. I received a letter for this in the post a few weeks prior.  At the scan the doctor asked me whether I wanted to know the sex, as this was the only scan done if it is a low-risk pregnancy. If we wanted another scan, we could have made an appointment at a Hospital to have it done privately at a cost of about €100.

Home birth Administration

Choosing to have a home birth was as simple as telling the midwives I would like a home birth. They made a note on my file (which is all electronic, by the way) and at around 36 weeks one of the midwives visited my home to discuss the procedure with me and have me sign forms.

She took my address and written directions to my house to give to the Hospital so that in case an ambulance is needed, the ambulance can find me quickly. She explained what would happen when labour started, what I had to do, who will be coming over and when. I felt very comfortable with her knowledge and the procedure and certainly felt like if there was an emergency, it would not be a crisis and I would be in great hands.

In SA I had a waterbirth and would have loved to have one again. Unfortunately this is not lawful in Ireland anymore as there was a very sad case of an infant drowning a few years ago. It is however absolutely fine to labour in water. ???? So I set out to find a birthing pool as the NMH provided pool would not be ready in time. I came across a FB page, Irish Homebirthers and Hopefuls who had Travelling Birthpools. I put my name down for one of the pools and collected it from a new mommy a few kilometers away two weeks before my due date. A week after bubs was born, the next lady in line collected it from me.

I was very glad to have the option of loaning a birthpool as I could not afford one at the time and it was very useful during labour. The midwives didn’t mind the birth pool and me labouring in and out of the pool at all and were supportive in this regard.

Labour

A week before bubs was born, I thought labour had started. I phoned NMH as instructed and asked to speak to a midwife. She gave me advice and asked that I update her in an hours’ time, and gave me a cell number. At around 12 am, I phoned the cell number, which was answered quite quickly.

A week later labour started for real. Again I phoned NMH and spoke to the midwives who asked that I keep them updated if anything changes in the frequency of contractions.

A couple of hours later, at around 18h00, two midwives arrived at my house with their bags and gear in tow. I was very happy with both of them and they made such a great team. At around 22h00, another midwife arrived as one of the initial midwives’ shift was about to end. Bubs was born at 01h00 after an extremely painful and painkiller free (I couldn’t handle the gas) labour. All three of the midwives stayed until 02h00 completing the birth admin, packing up and checking that bubs and I were ok. The last midwife left at after 03h00, making sure I was ok, had a shower and had eaten something.

For the following 5 days, there was a midwife who visited me every day, checked on bubs, checked on me, asked how I was feeling physically and emotionally, everything.

It was such a wonderful experience being in my own home, my own bed, my own shower, and having my privacy.

Birth registration

Nine days after bubs was born I left the house for the first time to visit the Civil Registration Office in Dublin to register the birth and get a birth certificate. We waited no more than 15 minutes and was in and out in a total of 25 minutes with a brand new birth certificate.

Conclusion

I had a wonderful experience with every person who I saw for the pregnancy and after the birth of bubs. I felt well taken care of, I felt informed all the way and any questions or concerns were addressed right away. Should we be so lucky, I will most definitely opt for a home birth with the Domino Scheme next time.

 


 

Important links: 

 

   #MapMyMove- Our coaching Service - Confused or lost and need some direction?

   Intro to Medical in Ireland

   Maternity care

   Private Medical Insurance

   Resources for this topic- Medical related - Loads of links to anything medical

   How to register a Birth in Ireland

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