Home births safe as in hospital - study

A major study of more than 500,000 women has found no significant difference between planned hospital births and planned home births, as long as mothers have access to trained midwives.

Published in the latest edition of the British Journal of Obstetrics, the Dutch study analysed the birth outcomes of 529,688 women with low-risk pregnancies over a seven-year period. Of those women, 321,307 planned to give birth at home, 163,261 planned to give birth in hospital and the intended place of birth was unknown for 45,120.

The study compared the number of babies born at home or in hospital who died during labour, within 24 hours and within seven days. It also compared the number of babies who were admitted to intensive care units after birth.

"No significant differences were found between planned home and planned hospital birth," researchers said. "This study shows that planning a home birth does not increase the risks of perinatal mortality and severe perinatal morbidity among low-risk women, provided the maternity care system facilitates this choice through the availability of well-trained midwives and through a good transportation and referral system."

The study comes just weeks after Australia's National Association of Specialist Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said the federal government should not support homebirth because there was too much risk.

Association president Andrew Pesce said homebirths, with or without midwife help, increased the risk of infant death threefold, compared with a three in 1000 chance of a full-term baby dying in hospital.

The Government's maternity services review, released in February, rejected funding for homebirth and said professional indemnity cover for a federally-funded model would be limited.

But Australian College of Midwives president Pat Brodie said the study lifted the cloud on the safety of homebirths and called on the federal government to rethink its position on supporting the practice.

"Over 400 submissions to the National Maternity Review from consumers, the majority requesting greater access to homebirth, cannot be ignored any longer," she said.

She said midwives had known for many years mothers had lower intervention rates and higher satisfaction rates in homebirths.

"This study ... confirms that homebirth services properly networked into mainstream care are safe."

- AAP