Two-and-a-half-week-old Everley will never look back at photos of herself post-birth in a hospital room. Instead, she'll be held by her parents in the comfort of her own home.
Registered midwife Lydia Szymanski helped Julie Jensen deliver Squamish's first registered home-birth baby on April 27 and Jensen was thrilled with the process.
“Having Lydia as a midwife really opened my eyes to birthing being such a natural process,” said Jensen, who had her first three children at the hospital.
“It was a fabulous birth and it was so much fun — Lydia came over to set up her equipment and we were chatting and it felt more like a sleepover than a delivery.”
According to both Jensen and Szymanski, good medical skills collaboration was key.
“Without the team, it really wouldn't have been possible,” Szymanski said. “That's really what makes home birth safe — having reliable back-up from physicians and knowing that you're going to have a second attendant come.”
The team included Szymanski (currently the only registered midwife in Squamish), a registered nurse who served as the second attendant and a physician.
Two midwives will join Szymanski in the fall, but every home birth requires a second attendant, so until then she has enlisted the help of local registered nurses. Normally a physician isn't required, but during the labour, Szymanski needed a second opinion and the physician agreed to come visit the Jensen home to help out.
“I was really upset at the thought of going to the hospital — I had the feeling that if I left home at all, I wouldn't give birth at home,” said Jensen.
“She [Szymanski] called and asked and he [the physician] was more than happy to come and check and said I was free to have my baby at home.”
Everley was born less than an hour later and everything went smoothly.
“In terms of the things that made it work really well the team effort was a highlight for me,” said Szymanski, who has been a midwife for almost two years.
The midwifery program at Squamish General Hospital was launched on Dec. 1, 2010, when Shannon Norberg, president of the Midwives Association of B.C. (MABC), spoke about the program's importance.
“This is great news for mothers and babies in Squamish. Registered midwives will be able to provide excellent care for healthy women throughout pregnancy, birth and postpartum, and babies will be able to be born closer to home,” Norberg said at the launch presentation.
Even before the launch, Szymanski started working with Squamish home-birth moms-to-be. She said she decided to undertake midwifery studies after attending births as a labour support person.
“I was inspired by birth and how transformative a time that is for women and I wanted to take on a bigger role,” she said. “Instead of just supporting them, I wanted to be their caregiver.
“I was inspired by birth and how transformative a time that is for women and I wanted to take on a bigger role,” she said. “Instead of just supporting them, I wanted to be their caregiver.
“It opens up options for women here locally who want to have their babies locally.”
Jensen agreed. She said the personalized care is incomparable and “there's no bed as comfortable as your own to crawl into after giving birth.”
She's convinced the entire process was less painful because it happened at home.
“We had fabulous prenatal care with Lydia,” Jensen said. “The length and pain of the labour were way cut down and I truly think it was because I was just more relaxed in my own home.”
She said the birth was everything she imagined it would be.
“It was really precious and we're so happy we were able to have that experience,” she said.
Szymanski said midwives always remain with women from when they're in active labour to when they've had their baby, no matter how long it takes.
“My longest was probably about 20 hours,” she said. “Generally we're a continuous comforting and familiar presence for them.”
Szymanski said there is a growing demand for midwifery. She plans to offer a presentation with the other midwives about midwifery care and home birth on June 3 at 7 p.m. at Gelato Carina. The presentation is free.
Those same midwives will then join Szymanski in Squamish this fall.
