a former LM/CPM speaks out
The MANA Study Cheney et al: In 2014, Cheney et al published “Outcomes of Care for 16,924 Planned Home Births in the United States: The Midwives Alliance of North America Statistics Project, 2004-2009” (AKA “the MANA study”) in the
Section V: Descriptive Studies The last section in the MANA list is Section V: Descriptive Studies and Registry Reports Observational Studies: International. Although they are titled “international,” only two of these studies are based outside of the U.S., so
Section IV: International Observational Studies The next category comprises international cohort and population-based observational studies. This collection of eight studies is of limited use to anyone trying to determine safety of home birth in the United States due to
Section III: Cohort/Population Studies (Re-Continued) Johnson & Daviss Continued: Still considering Johnson and Daviss, I wondered how this study could be considered by MANA to be among the best evidence for the safety of home birth, seeing as it
Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics I had first heard about these numbers years ago, when I was still practicing, long before that morning with the binder and the coffee. I had read enough to know that giving birth with
Section III: Cohort/Population Studies (Continued) Johnson & Daviss: Letter C under section III of the list of studies that the Midwives Alliance of North America deems the very best in proving home birth safety is titled, “Outcomes of planned
Canadian Registered Midwives and U.S. Midwives Compared First, registered midwives in Canada are quite different, in several ways, from the vast majority of home birth midwives in the United States. Registered midwives in Canada have to hold a baccalaureate
Section II: Randomized Controlled Trials Hendrix et al: Moving on to section II, labeled Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs), I am once again wondering how RCTs can be ethically conducted to study birthplace. I quickly realize that in this section
Section I: Meta-analyses and Systematic Reviews Olsen & Clausen: The first study listed, by Olsen and Clausen, was from 2012 and was published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. It purported to be a systematic review of randomized
“Doing My Research” It seems a popular notion that once you have read enough material from any source to make up your mind about a topic, you can declare, “I have done my research,” and rest assured that your