The culture of birth in Ireland at the interface between home and hospital : an ethnographic study of in-labour transfer to hospital during planned home birth

Abstract

Birth is not just a physiological process but also a significant life event embedded in historical, political and socio-cultural constructions. These constructions of birth have a profound influence on the provision of maternity services, maternity practices (midwifery and obstetrics) and on women's experiences. The cultural understanding of birth in Ireland places maternity care, for the most part, in centralised maternity hospitals focused on obstetrical-led, medical-based care. Women looking outside this model have few options available, midwife-led models of care are not well developed and the Health Services Executive does not have a legal obligation to meet women's needs in relation to place of birth. Women who choose an alternative to hospital birth, (for example, home birth) are stepping outside the conventional model of care. These women (and the midwives supporting them) demonstrate that they view birth as a nomral process that does not result in them needing hospital-based medical surveillance and intervention.