Nikki writes:

'A large (3,000+ births /year) local hospital is getting rid of its LDRPs.
One reason is that more folks can be fit into the postpartum rooms than in
LDRPs; another reason is that so many mothers complained about having to have
their babies with them all the time.'

I can believe the reason that throughput can be maximised by shovelling
everyone into another room after delivery - and of course Nikki is right to
remind us of the way this is so like a factory production line : ( .

But I really cannot believe that mothers would *prefer*  to have their
babies taken away from them straight after birth - did anyone ask them,
helping them to make an informed choice, or is this just HPs telling
everyone else what women want?

In the UK  most mothers labour and birth in the same room, and then they
stay with their babies in the same room for probably an hour or so, and
then get moved to the post natal ward - with their babies.  It hasn't
always been thus - with my first baby 18 yrs ago I was moved at the start
of second stage onto a trolley, wheeled to the delivery room and tipped off
the trolley to a delivery bed. This was inhuman care, but normal for the
time. We have sinced moved on, as has the US with LDRPs.


Too often, the admirable notion of mother-centred care can be hi-jacked to
support negative and regressive policies.  So taking babies away at night
is presented as 'giving mothers the chance to sleep' ; giving bottles is a
way of 'giving the mother a break' ;  supporting breastfeeding is not good
because it makes bottle feeding mothers feel guilty. I expect we can make a
long list!

Heather Welford Neil
NCT bfc Newcastle upon Tyne UK