Home Birth

Home birth refers to the occurrence of labor and childbirth taking place in private space rather than in hospitals or other medicalized environments. Home births are generally free from medical interventions such as continuous fetal monitoring and artificial rupture of membranes, and are generally undertaken without anesthesia. Although the majority of home births are attended by midwives, some women choose unattended home births and deliver their babies alone. Home birth as a practice has led to the presence of a home-birth movement, undertaken by women who view this method of childbirth as a political decision. The home-birth movement blends a variety of ideological positions including women from feminist, religious, and ecological movements.

Although the maj ority of children globally are born at home, in Westernized environments this practice is unusual; in the United States, fewer than 1 percent of infants are birthed at home. The practice of home birth in the United States, Canada, and Europe is contested, with much opposition coming from the medical community, especially the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Legally, some midwives (especially those without nursing certifications) may be prosecuted in some states for assisting women who birth at home.