Movie: "The Business of Being Born."

Specialties CNM

Published

http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com/trailer.htm

Has anyone seen this movie? I hear it's great.

Specializes in pedi, pedi psych,dd, school ,home health.
COMPLICATED issue.

Lots of good points in that documentary to be sure. But just as alarming to me, anyhow, is the unwillingness by so many to take personal responsibility for their own health/wellness and birth experiences. (which Ricki does address as well).

Another important sticking point as far as I am concerned: We have to somehow get a grip on the insurance and legal industries, not just the medical ones! JMO anyhow after 10 years "in the business" myself.

One of the biggest problems IMO: We are dealing with a fast-food society and self-centeredness that is so pervasive, it shocks me from time to time. How many times have I seen a mom-to-be who wanted to have a baby on her "schedule" for whatever reason? And the new desire by so many primips to have c/section to avoid "lady partsl delivery" trauma/complications or "anxiety"? I see this everyday. They push our doctors to their limits, sometimes. We have heard of them waiting in their offices, in tears, because they reached their due dates and not in labor yet and want them to "do something NOW!" So what do you think happens? Often, they get their way!

I will definately buy the DVD when it comes out. But I also know this issue is hugely complicated and goes beyond merely the greed of the medical profession it discusses at length......

We all share responsibility/culpability here, I am afraid, as a society. Push Mother Nature too hard, and she will give you a hearty shove right back. That is what I have said for years regarding my work in L/D nursing. It holds true almost every time!

i SOOO agree with the fast food society business. I have heard many new moms who say " I will deliver when I am ready not the baby or the doc".. I know some that even plan the day for induction long before the event!!!:uhoh3:

cant help but wonder if they are asking for trouble... when they are cooked they are cooked!! same with all of the ultrasouds that are done now... "just to see the baby"

Specializes in Triage, MedSurg, MomBaby, Peds, HH.

I'm glad they bring up the pitocin issue. This is very disturbing to me and I think the public should be aware of this practice.

What I bothers me is the misleading "fact" that we have the second highest newborn mortality rate. We are the only country that includes preterm babies in our statistics! Other countries consider any baby born before full term a fetal death and therefore do not include them in their reported infant mortality rate.

Lest anyone think that is from a right wing agenda viewpoint, it's not -- I will be voting Democrat in this election and what I stated above is from my very liberal health care ethics instructor.

Including the US's preterm infant deaths in a study where elsewhere only full term, live births are reported, is to say the least, statistically flawed on the basis of not having like factors -- and therefore not valid. This "fact" is more of a myth than a statistic.

I would very be very interested in comparing our fulltime live birth numbers with that of countries.

In the meantime I wish people would stop manipulating the public with this nonsense. It will cause unnecessary distrust, fear and suspicion of the care our L&D nurses give, and unnecessary unease to the patient. What needs to be emphasized is educating and preparing young couples about the birth process and where the real dangers lie -- such as nosocomial infection, unnecessary pit, etc.

Specializes in Triage, MedSurg, MomBaby, Peds, HH.
COMPLICATED issue.

Lots of good points in that documentary to be sure. But just as alarming to me, anyhow, is the unwillingness by so many to take personal responsibility for their own health/wellness and birth experiences. (which Ricki does address as well).

Another important sticking point as far as I am concerned: We have to somehow get a grip on the insurance and legal industries, not just the medical ones! JMO anyhow after 10 years "in the business" myself.

One of the biggest problems IMO: We are dealing with a fast-food society and self-centeredness that is so pervasive, it shocks me from time to time. How many times have I seen a mom-to-be who wanted to have a baby on her "schedule" for whatever reason? And the new desire by so many primips to have c/section to avoid "lady partsl delivery" trauma/complications or "anxiety"? I see this everyday. They push our doctors to their limits, sometimes. We have heard of them waiting in their offices, in tears, because they reached their due dates and not in labor yet and want them to "do something NOW!" So what do you think happens? Often, they get their way!

I will definately buy the DVD when it comes out. But I also know this issue is hugely complicated and goes beyond merely the greed of the medical profession it discusses at length......

We all share responsibility/culpability here, I am afraid, as a society. Push Mother Nature too hard, and she will give you a hearty shove right back. That is what I have said for years regarding my work in L/D nursing. It holds true almost every time!

I come from a long line of nurses and doctors, and I can't believe this new "customer service/hotel/beauty salon" approach that, inexplicably, hospital administrations seem to be fostering these days.

I laughed at your comment about primips wanting to avoid "anxiety." To those of us who've raised teenagers and lived to tell the tale, I have to wonder what kind of moms they'll be in about 15 years :chuckle

Wildchipmunk~ We do have one of the highest newborn mortality rates in the INDUSTRIALIZED WORLD. In the studies that this information is coming from they are looking at LBW and premature births and comparing our rate to other industrialized nations and we are 25th on the list, right above Latvia. So, that information is correct:

Download The State of the World's Mothers from this page (it takes just a couple minutes) and then check out page 42 on the US having a higher death rate than most other industrialized nations:

http://www.savethechildren.org/campaigns/state-of-the-worlds-mothers-report/2007/

Its a real realty check.

I would like someone to address the statement that other countries don't count preterm births as live births in their statistics. I have heard both that this is true and that it is untrue.

Does anyone have a source to verify this?

Specializes in Triage, MedSurg, MomBaby, Peds, HH.
(snip) download the state of the world's mothers from this page (it takes just a couple minutes) and then check out page 42 on the us having a higher death rate than most other industrialized nations:

http://www.savethechildren.org/campaigns/state-of-the-worlds-mothers-report/2007/

its a real realty check.

hi malga,

thanks for taking the time to respond. i referenced the link above, but it just restated the same statistic and had no information on how they defined a live birth.

here are some quick links which go into more detail how this study is flawed. if we compared our full term birth rate with that of the other countries we would not be in the same place.

"while the united states reports every case of infant mortality, many other countries do not. for example, a 2006 artilce in u.s. news & world report states, "first, it's shaky ground to compare u.s. infant mortality with reports from other countries. the united states counts all births as live if they show any sign of life, regardless of prematurity or size. this includes what many other countries report as stillbirths. in austria and germany, fetal weight must be at least 500 grams (1 pound) to count as a live birth; in other parts of europe, such as switzerland, the fetus must be at least 30 centimeters (12 inches) long. in belgium and france, births at less than 26 weeks of pregnancy are registered as lifeless. and some countries don't reliably register babies who die within the first 24 hours of birth. thus, the united states is sure to report higher infant mortality rates. for this very reason, the organization for economic cooperation and development, which collects the european numbers, warns of head-to-head comparisons by country." [2]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/infant_mortality

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/111/5/e596?maxtoshow=&hits=10&hits=10&resultformat=&fulltext=infant+mortality+rate+skew&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1&firstindex=0&sortspec=relevance&resourcetype=hwcit

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/79/6/1054

i'll post more later because i must work on a paper :coollook:

I'm glad they bring up the pitocin issue. This is very disturbing to me and I think the public should be aware of this practice.

What I bothers me is the misleading "fact" that we have the second highest newborn mortality rate. We are the only country that includes preterm babies in our statistics! Other countries consider any baby born before full term a fetal death and therefore do not include them in their reported infant mortality rate.

Lest anyone think that is from a right wing agenda viewpoint, it's not -- I will be voting Democrat in this election and what I stated above is from my very liberal health care ethics instructor.

Including the US's preterm infant deaths in a study where elsewhere only full term, live births are reported, is to say the least, statistically flawed on the basis of not having like factors -- and therefore not valid. This "fact" is more of a myth than a statistic.

This is fact not fiction- the uk count any births from 24 weeks gestation birth anything under this is considered a miscarriage- now there is a grey area between 23-24 where there is some discrepency over exact gestaional age in this case usally the call is made at birth.

The main reason that there is a high infant mortality and morbidity in the US is because there are millions of women who do not recieve antenatal care and postnatal care- and that is not going to be fixed over night if ever. But may be all that money that is wasted by unnessary intervention- testing- inductions- circumsions- close montioring and nursery admissions of well babies could be filtered to free antal care for all - in my dreams.

No where in this world is perfect but things can change if minds are opened.

Specializes in Triage, MedSurg, MomBaby, Peds, HH.

Hi Belinda,

Your reply confirms my point: "UK counts everything over 24 weeks as a live birth...everything else is a miscarriage." Since here we count everything born before 24 weeks as a live birth, it naturally follows that our mortality numbers will be higher than those of the UK.

From a statistical standpoint, then, we are comparing two different populations: those infants born after 24 weeks (elsewhere) and those in the US that include everything born before 24 weeks.

Thanks for letting us know the resuscitation guidelines in the UK. Due to the vastly poor outcomes and suffering involved in our NICUs here, I think it would be much kinder to everyone involved if we did not try reviving them so young as we do. Now THAT subject could be a whole documentary in and of itself.

From a statistical standpoint, then, we are comparing two different populations: those infants born after 24 weeks (elsewhere) and those in the US that include everything born before 24 weeks.

.

These are World Health Organization statistics. The guidelines for how they calculate their numbers are outlined here:

Maternal Mortality:

The death of a woman while

pregnant or within 42 days

of termination of pregnancy,

irrespective of the duration and

site of the pregnancy, from any

cause related to or aggravated by

the pregnancy or its management

but not from accidental or

incidental causes.

http://www.who.int/whosis/mme_2005.pdf

Infant Mortality:

"The neonatal period commences at birth and ends 28 completed days after birth.

Live birth refers to the complete expulsion or extraction from its mother of a product of conception, irrespective of the duration of the pregnancy, which, after such separation, breathes or shows any other evidence of life - e.g. beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord or definite movement of voluntary muscles - whether or not the umbilical cord has been cut or the placenta is attached. Each product of such a birth is considered live born"

http://www.who.int/healthinfo/statistics/indneonatalmortality/en/

So although countries calculate things differently, when we are talking abou WHO statistics they are calculated uniformly. Also remember that no matter the country these things are underreported.

I recently had a delivery that should have been filmed. A primip,no drugs, no epidural, a husband to die for as a coach. I felt like an intruder in their experience. During transition, she whimpered for drugs and her hubby coached her through it. The exhilaration after truly delivering..........and not be delivered of........your own baby is a euphoria that can never be duplicated. I was on a high myself for days. Made me remember when I was really a labor nurse and not a doctor's nurse or slave to the medical model.

Specializes in OB, Cardiac.

I saw it last weekend (it's on video now). I thought it was fantastic! Like a previous poster noted, it's nothing new if you already know about birth choices etc... Still, I think everyone woman should watch it so they can be educated about the choices they have & how beautiful a natural birth can be. My husband watched it w/ me & afterwards said that he really would love for us to have a home birth (which just became legal in our state!).

I'm going to buy it & make all my girlfriends watch it....especially when they get pg! :)

Specializes in LTC, Med/Surg, Peds, ICU, Tele.

This movie trailer says it all. Has anyone here seen this movie?

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