If you are unfamiliar with midwifery and birthing centers then you probably have a few questions you’d like answered. The following are some of the most common questions we encounter about Babymoon Inn Birthing Center specifically and midwifery in general. If you have a question that isn’t addressed on this page, please feel free to contact us at julia@babymooninn.com
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is a freestanding birth center and why would I choose a birthing center over a hospital?
A. A “freestanding” birth center is a birth center that is not affiliated with any hospital. It is a home-like setting where safe maternity care is provided to low-risk women. In our birth center, our philosophy of care supports the birthing families’ choices and desires in how they labor and give birth. Because labor and birth are considered normal events, the usual rigid protocols are not imposed on a normally laboring woman. We focus on what most often goes right with labor and avoid unnecessary intervention. As long as the mother and baby remain normal, strict timeframes for the progress of labor are not required.
In the birth center, some interventions are never employed, such as:
- induction and augmentation of labor with oxytocin
- continuous electronic fetal monitoring
- epidural anesthesia
- operative delivery
According to Henci Goer in Obstetrical Myths Versus Research Realities (A Guide to the Medical Literature), “…the routine interventions practiced in hospitals introduce risks….Birth center studies also uniformly report much lower rates of these interventions.”
Birth center studies uniformly report outcomes equivalent or superior to those of comparable women giving birth in the hospital.
Q. Are you a licensed health care facility?
A. Yes. We are a licensed and nationally accredited health care facility. We are licensed by the Arizona Department of Health Services. We are nationally accredited by the American Association of Birth Centers, Commission for the Accreditation of Birth Centers.
Q: Who can give birth at Babymoon Inn Birthing Center?
A. Birth in a birthing center caters to the healthy, low-risk mother. Some risk factors do not prohibit you from giving birth at the center, and some risk factors must be closely monitored by your midwife and/or by her consulting physicians. If you are healthy and without any chronic medical conditions such as heart disease or diabetes, you probably are eligible for a birth center delivery. You will be carefully screened by your midwife on your first visit and continuously evaluated throughout your pregnancy to promote a safe and satisfying birth experience.
Q: Is this a safe way to have my baby?
A. Birth center studies (with care being given by midwives) in the medical literature uniformly report outcomes equivalent or superior to those of comparable women giving birth in the hospital. Fullerton and Severino report in a 1992 Journal of Nurse Midwifery the following… “[Low risk] women in hospital were more likely to receive an interventive style of labor and birth management [than similar women in birth centers.] Neonatal outcomes were…similar, although the incidence of sustained fetal distress, prolapsed cord, and difficulty in establishing respirations were significantly greater in the hospital sample. Hospital care did not offer any advantage…, and it was associated with increased intervention. The results of this study provide support for the National Birth Center Study’s conclusion that birth centers offer a safe and acceptable alternative fore selected pregnant women.”
Q: Can I birth my baby at Babymoon Inn if I’ve had a previous Cesarean section (VBAC), am pregnant with twins, or have a breech baby?
A: Under our policies and procedures and the standards promulgated by the American Association of Birth Centers and the Commission for the Accrediation of Birth Centers, we cannot accept women in the above categories at Babymoon Inn. We are able to refer you to VBAC-supportive care providers in the area. For more information on VBAC, and to join a supportive community, visit the International Cesarean Awareness Network’s (ICAN) website at http://www.ican-online.org/
Q: Will my insurance cover this?
Yes. See the section on our fees and costs. You are responsible for your bill and the cost associated with billing should your provider fail to pay in full. We seek to keep the cash price affordable and offer payment plans.
Q: Do you do water births?
A. Yes! Where a mother chooses to give birth at Babymoon Inn is her choice and she has many options. Some of the benefits to laboring in the water include:
- Reduces sensory stimulus, thus producing less stress-related hormones
- Increases production of pain inhibitors, i.e., endorphins
- Decreases blood pressure
- Increases ability of the mother to focus
- Reduces the sensations of pain – an analgesic effect
- Increases skin elasticity, reducing the amount of perineal tearing
- Makes it easy for mom or dad (with midwife assistance) to “catch” their own baby because of the buoyancy of water
- Gentler birth for baby
Q: What are your office hours?
A: Our office hours are Tuesdays from noon to 7 and Fridays from 10 to 4. Prospective client tours are held on Saturday afternoons. Please contact Julia Hall to schedule a tour or an appointment at 480.270.9819 or babymooninn@gmail.com.
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