We
are all familiar with media reporting of
“new” medical discoveries and scientific breakthroughs. This type of news is often reduced to a 30 second
“headline news” form at such as the ‘CBS Healthwatch.com’
& repeated several times a day on all the networks and cable channels.
These hyped-up
reports usually focus on a new drug, diagnostic test or medical devise
expected to greatly improve the general health of the public, save money or
cure a disease. However, there is one type of crucially important
healthcare news that affects 4,000,000 women each and every year that
has never been reported to the American public by the news media. Nor
is it being taken into account in the halls of government where it accounts
for 20% of the entire health care budget.
Here is an example of
what a mythical “CBBS.Healthwatch.org” (Council for Better Birth Services)
might say to remedy this long-standing inequity. Every word is true
(scientifically-validated and generously documented) except for the
“discovery” part, as what it describes has been known and used
successfully for thousands of years.
The “new” method
is the right use of gravity. As we all know, gravity has been around
for a very long time. Right use of gravity costs nothing, has no
“side-effects” and is drug-free (eliminating drugs reactions, allergies
and added cost). This “new method” also includes a philosophy and set
of principles best described as the “Midwifery Model of Care”
in which each childbearing women is psychologically supported through out
labor and is encouraged to be upright and mobile during labor and a vertical
position is used for the pushing stage.
Think of how
maternity care in the US would change if this information were part of the
public dialogue. So far Americans have had little opportunity to inquire
into the right use of high tech obstetrics on healthy women or to question
the enormous expenditures of our limited healthcare dollars on maternity
care that is not science-based or cost-effective – that is,
obstetrical care for healthy women with normal pregnancies.
FLASH ~ Scientists discover revolutionary new methods of
childbirth that can make birth safer for up to 70% of all childbearing women.
The new methods increase the mother’s natural pain-relieving
hormones (beta-endorphins) and enhance her feeling of well-being so that
labor-retarding pain medications are rarely needed. This shortens labor
without having to use artificial hormones.
The use of these methods speeds up the pushing stage so as to
reduce fetal distress and maternal exhaustion. It protects the mother’s
perineium from tearing during delivery and also reduces pelvic floor
problems later in the woman’s life.
These methods vastly reduce the
need for surgical assistance during vaginal birth (forceps or vacuum
extraction) and cut the Cesarean surgery rate by more than 300%.
These new methods have a high rate of success for making childbirth
easier, safer and more satisfactory for both mother and baby. Recovery from
childbirth is quicker and easier.
Babies born to mothers using these new techniques are healthy at birth and
have with a 200% reduction in admission to NICU.
Long-term successful breastfeeding rates also rises dramatically.
The risk of narcotic addiction and other drug abuse in adolesence is vastly
reduced in the off-spring of mothers cared by this new method.
In addition to the individual benefits and cost-saving to society
from reduced drug addiction and related criminal behavior, these new methods
save from 1/3 to 2/3 of the current expense of maternity care.
At present 20% of entire healthcare budget goes to pay for
maternity care. If seven out of ten mothers were cared from under these
life-preserving, cost- reducing, safety enhancing methods, the national
health care budget for childbirth related services would be cut by half.
This would free up 10% of our multi-billion dollar healthcare
budget for newer medical breakthroughs such as organ transplants and
MediCare. For senior citizens and those without health insurance the saved
money would help avoid the need to ration medical care to while
benefiting mothers and babies and serving other important societal goals.
