I really like the conclusions (AHA! Moments) drawn by Carrie Blake at http://trainmidwivessavelives.org/. Full text here:
AHA! Moment #1: Systematically provide training appropriate for anyone who might be attending a birth (family or community member) to enable them to make good decisions as to which women are low-risk.
AHA! Moment #2: Provide training to those same people as to how to provide a clean birth environment, what to do when a baby doesn’t breathe at birth (and no resuscitation equipment is available), and a mom bleeds excessively (and no pharmaceuticals are available).
I have also thought about the system that needs to be in place in areas like Laos where homebirths attended by trained personnel, let alone hospital births, are a (far in the) future goal. Training for community/family members seems to be a practical goal for starters. I’d love to hear from people on the ground, working to promote safe birth, on the subject.
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