Comments on: ‘Doctor drain’ threatens rural health care

By: lifequotes

lifequotes — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 23:10:40 +0000

I completely agree with you, it's indeed a big problem! something got to be done about it!

By: lifequotes

lifequotes — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 18:10:40 +0000

I completely agree with you, it's indeed a big problem! something got to be done about it!

By: lifequotes

lifequotes — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 16:10:40 +0000

I completely agree with you, it's indeed a big problem! something got to be done about it!

By: desmoinesdem

desmoinesdem — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 18:29:55 +0000

True, but if midwifery care were more widely available (in hospitals as well as out of hospitals), and more commonly covered by insurance, more women would probably take that option.

I know of many women from small-town Iowa who have been frustrated by lack of access to midwifery care. They are stuck with bad choices like do I drive two hours to the nearest city with care I want, or do I go to the local hospital where the c-section rate can be as high as 45 percent.

By: LyndaWaddington

LyndaWaddington — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 17:14:34 +0000

There is data on certified midwives in the state — at least as far as the number of those who have certified (the data available cannot yet determine how many are practicing). In any event, although the number of certified midwives is increasing, the overall percentage of women who opt for a birth with a midwife attending has stayed steady. Most Iowa families — roughly 95 percent — continue to give birth in a hospital setting with a doctor attending.

By: desmoinesdem

desmoinesdem — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 10:13:58 +0000

It's a big problem. Yet the bill on expanding access to midwifery care (which would help address the shortage of prenatal care in rural areas while also reducing unnecessary interventions during labor and delivery) died in the legislature.