Many people’s plans are changing amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and those of expectant mothers are no exception.
Since the start of the pandemic, the Association of Ontario Midwives (AOM) has seen a noticeable increase in women avoiding hospital births in favour of giving birth at home.
“We are seeing in general a trend of roughly doubling the number of people planning an out of hospital birth,” said Jasmin Tecson, president of the AOM.
Tecson said that depending on where a practice is located, they see anywhere between 5 to 50 per cent of all babies born at home, but says the average is usually between 20 to 50 per cent.
There are many reasons women might choose a home birth, like comfort, freedom and the number of people they want around them.
“They might be concerned about being in a hospital where there are people being tested or treated for COVID, even if that’s in an entirely separate unit,” Tecson said.
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At the height of the pandemic, women were not allowed to have anyone with them when they gave birth in a hospital, which could be a factor in more women exploring other options.
The rules have since changed, with women now allowed to have one person with them.
According to the London Health Sciences Centre, the number of women giving birth in hospital from March to June this year is 45 less than in 2019 and 25 less than in 2018.
This isn’t the first time Midwives have noticed an increase in women choosing home birth.
“We certainly saw the same thing during SARS,” Tecson said
“That was a time when we had health care providers actually encouraging people to choose out of hospital birth if they were a good candidate.”
Rebecca Thompson, a registered midwife with Thames Vally Midwives in London, Ont., said their practice also saw a noticeable uptick in women exploring home birth as an option.
“When this (the pandemic) was all starting … in March, we had people calling our clinic who were 38 to 39 weeks pregnant looking to see if they could get a midwife or have a home birth.”
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Thompson said it was difficult having to turn many away because each midwife only takes on 30 to 46 clients per year to ensure all women get an equal amount of care.
She said even current clients started enquiring more about the option of a home birth due to vulnerable family members or concerns for their own health and safety.
“We definitely have some clients who have indicated home birth would have never been an option with them initially, but then with the changes brought on by pandemic, it suddenly became a very viable option.”
According to the AOM, between 2017 and 2018, 83 per cent of women in Ontario gave birth in a hospital, with 14 per cent opting for a home birth and 3 per cent giving birth in one of Ontario’s three birth centres.
Thompson and Tecson both said giving birth at home for a healthy pregnancy is just as safe if not safer than giving birth in a hospital.
“We essentially bring the same amount of supplies as someone who has gone to a level one hospital,” Thompson said.
Thompson thinks it’s important to add that home birth is only considered an option if there have been no warning signs through the pregnancy because their main priority is what is best for the mother and child.
“By simply not having to go out into the community to give birth and they know who is in their house, so it’s definitely less of a concern when it comes to the pandemic portion of it in terms of exposure.”
The AOM also reports that the number of women choosing home birth for the second child more than doubles.
Jacqui Parsons, a mother of five from Strathroy, Ont., had already planned to have her fifth child at home once the pandemic hit.
She welcomed her son Thatcher Parsons into the world on March 27 at the hight of the pandemic.
Thatcher Parsons born march 27, 2020.
Jacqui Parsons
“For us, it was a relief because we heard the hospitals were safe, but at the same time, it was nice to know we would be in our own bubble,” she said.
Parsons gave birth to her first three children in a hospital, but says with her third birth, she felt anxious and had a bad experience, whereas at home she feels more at ease.
“I did not feel like there was no turning back,” she said when choosing home birth.
“I felt safe in my own spaces, I would walk around my room or my kitchen, and I could lie down, and that brings comfort to me knowing I was in my own space.”
She and the two midwives Global News spoke to encourage more women to ask their doctors if giving birth at home is an option for them.
Although it is hard to speculate, Thompson said she hopes that through everything that has happened, more women are aware of all of their options.