( The Cliffs of Moher taken 3/2011)
I choose to look up the birthing experience in Ireland (mostly in part because I had just been there). I was taken aback by how different the process is there versus her in the United States. I expected to see a similar model of medical intervention but upon remembering how depressed the country actually is (despite how beautiful it is) I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. There are 2 main birthing models in Ireland one is the governments model called “Maternity and Infant Care Scheme” and the private option of “Midwifery”. I will briefly explain both.
The Maternity and Infant Care Scheme has requirements and I compare it to Pennsylvania’s ACCESS option (which is free health care). An expecting mother has to show residency within the republic. No health care is required. What shocked me even more is that ALL services are free. Exams and the delivery are entitled free of charge out of respect for the birth. Here’s the difference…the mother receives her first exam before 12 weeks. Then, provided everything looks “normal”, 7 and only 7 more checkups occur. There are also no birthing classes or infant care education. There is no prenatal screenings such as diabetes, genetic disorders, blood pressure, ect. In the United States a woman has a check up as soon as pregnancy is suspected and every month following until about the beginning of the 8th month. Exams are then scheduled for every other week. At 9 months the exams are weekly and can even occur 2 times in a week.
The second model is Midwifery. This compares closely to our version of the Midwife birthing experience. It is private and you have the option of an at home birth or a hospital birth. Since this is a private option care is customized and an expectant mother can see her midwife monthly and obtain all the screenings we consider routine. The expecting family has to pay out of pocket for these services but it seems to offer more comprehensive care.
The other bit of information I found was that physicians only primarily handle high risk pregnancies and midwives or clinical nurses handle the “normal” cases.
Websites used for reference:
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