Birth research bombards us nearly daily with new research,
new studies and new opinions. Yet one thing is clear, at the end of the year,
it is interesting and important to reflect back and look at the evolution of
hot topics for that year. Let’s look at
2012.
 |
| "SQUIRREL!" |
You can search this blog for the “hot topics” of 2012 and
also Google them. In chronological
order, they are waterbirths, Beyonce, Gisele Bundchens Birth Around the World, woman
centered cesareans, homebirth vs midwifery care, Optimal Care in Childbirth:
The Case for a Physiologic Approach, Mayim Bialik’s Beyond the Sling, evidence
based practice, World Breastfeeding Week, mindfulness guided childbirth, Call
the Midwife, Bottled Up ~ The Film, Jennie Joseph and No Woman, No Cry, Kate Middleton, and the
call for holiday elective inductions/cesareans.
This looks like a small, short list but it represents nearly 100 blog
entries just on this blog alone, not to mention other blogs, websites, Facebook
messages and Tweets! The media follows these hot topics for a while, giving
them some good exposure but like a puppy who sees a squirrel, the media quickly
changes when a star becomes pregnant (ie Beyonce or currently one of the Kardashians)
or medical associations leak questionable statements about midwifery care,
homebirth or waterbirth. Yes, questionable statements in plain view of
substantiated research to the contrary.
The birth community, as I define it as all childbirth
educators, doulas, midwives, lactation consultants, physicians and nurses who
truly practice evidence based medicine, is poorly versed on the arts of
marketing and immediate “fire” extinguishing (the "fire" being instances such
as the aforementioned leak of
questionable statements to distract from a concrete discussion). To effectively
combat the anti-evidence based practices and statements, the birth community
must first come together in an effective and continuously productive way. Yes,
this entails swallowing egos and pride and releasing territorialism for the
sake of mothers and babies.
After all, isn't it for mothers and babies we are in this profession in the first place? Right?
My hope for 2013 is that more media time will be given to
evidence-based practice and the pressure to actually use what is evident in the
literature will become more commonplace.
I pray that breastfeeding will no longer be looked at as an option and
that women will no longer have to be so militant in order to feed their
children properly in public. I want the
atmosphere to be changed from “Please get to at least 39 weeks of pregnancy” to
“why would you want to induce or have a cesarean and risk your baby’s health?”. I would like nurses/hospitals and doulas to
reach common ground. And because I
believe that education…childbirth education…is the turning point for both expectant
parents as well as professionals – I wish that childbirth education would
become commonplace and every educator’s class was full to overflowing!
You know, we can make it all happen.
We really can.
Are you willing to take that
step with me in 2013?
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