Pregnancy and birth are not an illness.
Homebirth Access Sydney (HAS) is a non-profit, community-based organisation. Our focus is on supporting homebirth families and increasing the access to birthing choices – especially homebirth - for women in NSW.
HAS was established in 1978 to provide information and support to people interested in homebirth, including parents, midwives, childbirth educators and birth support workers. Today, more than 300 families and birth professionals are members of HAS.
Pregnancy and birth are undoubtedly some of the most memorable times in a woman’s life. Sadly, many women in Australia have a less than optimal experience in hospitals. Every year, more than a quarter of a million women give birth in Australia – it’s an everyday, natural event. However, birth is overwhelmingly managed within the acute care hospital setting and is the single biggest use of hospital beds in Australia. Homebirth provides birthing women and their families with a better alternative.
Unfortunately, the options for birthing at home in Australia are limited. Few women are choosing homebirth in the care of a qualified midwife or care by a known midwife in a birth centre or hospital setting. There are currently only three homebirth services associated with public hospitals in NSW and around 40 independent midwives practising across the state.
Only 3% of Australian mothers have midwife-led care and less than 1% give birth at home.
By comparison:
- in the United Kingdom, more than 65% of women have a midwife as their lead carer and 2% have a homebirth
- in New Zealand, over 76% of women have midwife-led care with a homebirth rate of up to 6%
- in the Netherlands, 46% of births are attended by midwives and 30% of babies are born at home
Homebirth Access Sydney is actively lobbying
to improve this situation.
Pregnancy and birth are not an illness and treating birth within a medical model has seen intervention rates in Australia reaching a high of more than 30% caesarean section births. This contrasts with a World Health Organisation recommended rate of 10-15%.
Evidence demonstrates that homebirth and midwife-led care provide better outcomes for women and their babies, higher levels of satisfaction to mothers and their families and are cost effective for Government.