BORDER obstetrician Pieter Mourik hopes Dannii Minogue’s home birth scare could be a turning point in the campaign against the practice.
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The television judge and singer gave birth to her first child, a boy, on Monday but only after being rushed to Melbourne’s Royal Women’s Hospital at the eleventh hour after “complications” during the attempted home birth.
Dr Mourik has been an uncompromising opponent of “ideology-driven” home births — at present being undertaken by two in every 1000 Australian women.
He said the incident was another reminder of the risks following the death of Joyous Birth president Janet Fraser’s baby during a five-day home birth in Sydney last year.
“It is a good thing that this is in the public eye because it makes people realise that the zealots who have been pushing this sort of dangerous practice are going to have a disaster,” he said.
“A midwife on her own cannot do what a team of midwives can do in a hospital.”
“For any women thinking it would be wonderful to have a home birth, the reality check comes now.”
Dr Mourik said Minogue’s age had compounded her risk with the chances of a “smooth, uncomplicated” delivery dropping every year after about 16.
“I don’t know the clinical details,” he said.
“But I think it is unrealistic for any 38-year-old having her first baby to think it’s going to be a normal delivery at home.
“At 38, you’ve got an
increase in blood pressure, diabetes, an increase in the tissues in the pelvis getting a bit more stiff.
“She should have
questioned those who said it was safe.
“Half of women in labour the first time don’t realise how bloody painful it is.
“Ninety-five per cent of women need pain relief during childbirth.
“She might have got to where suddenly it was all too much to bear so she was rushed to have some decent pain relief.”
Dr Mourik said that one in eight “low-risk” births were actually potentially deadly.
“One in eight of all low-risk women will have an acute, life and death emergency,” he said.
“Would you fly a plane with a one in eight chance of crashing?
“If she has a big tear, or haemorrhage, or the shoulders get stuck, we can fix that in the hospital.
“But if you’re living at Sandy Creek or Allans Flat, or up in Corryong, you’re in trouble.”
Dr Mourik said that in such an instance “you wouldn’t have an ambulance standing by”.
