Maternal Assisted Caesarean PDF Print E-mail

 

Birthrites certainly understands a woman's desire to be part of the birth.   There have been  3 maternal assisted caesareans in WA so far  (at December 2008) and all the women have been extremely happy with them.
 
At this stage a maternal assisted caesarean can only be done for a planned caesarean, not after labour has started.     The mother scrubs for surgery and puts on gloves.   The bed is tilted upwards at a slight angle to allow her to reach down.   The obstetrician wears 2 pairs of gloves.    The obstetrician births the head and shoulders then the mother is asked to reach down and her hands are guided to be under the baby’s armpits.  The mother can then pull the baby to her chest and have immediate skin-to-skin.   The obstetrician  then removes the first layer of gloves and completes the caesarean in the second pair.  This is to make sure any contamination received from your hands is not transferred into the wound.     If all is well then the baby stays with you on your chest for as long as possible, even into recovery if you request it and the hospital has the capacity for it.
 
As there have been so few of these, there is very little written information about it.   However, we would recommend you ask your obstetrician to contact King Edward Memorial Hospital in Perth -  (08) 9340 2222  to discuss the procedure further.  
 
 
If you would like to speak to a woman who has done this already please contact our coregroup  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it who can put you in touch with her.  She has said she is very willing to help anyone interested in this type of caesarean birth. 
 
From speaking with the doctors who have performed these caesareans, there is not a huge difference from the doctor’s point of view in terms of procedure.  However, they did stress that it was important for the whole team to be informed well beforehand of the event, particularly the anaesthetist and the paediatrician.
 
Below are  attached some notes written by Dr Gary Swift, Obstetrician & Gynaecologist from Queensland who performed the first one there.      
 
We also suggest you contact our online forum C-Aware, as there have been somen women from the eastern states who have written of their maternal assisted caesarean experiences on the forum.    If you log onto C-Aware through the website and send an email asking for any maternal assisted caesarean experience, someone may answer you.  It is something that does seem well worth asking about as the women who have experienced this were absolutely over the moon about their experience.
 
We wish you all the very best for an empowered birthing journey!
 

 

Notes for your doctor

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Last Updated ( Thursday, 30 July 2009 11:07 )
 

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