Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight. I’m Gillian Woodward.
Voice 2
And I’m Roger Basick. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Click here to follow along with this program on YouTube.
Voice 1
You are a young woman living in the mountains of Kaokoland, Namibia. You are poor and pregnant. The nearest hospital is over an hour away. You cannot afford the hospital anyway. You are scared. You have never been pregnant. You do not know what to do. You are afraid you will lose your baby. You are scared you might die in childbirth. You have so many questions with no one to ask. What do you do? Who will help you? There is probably only one person who can help. She is called a midwife.
Voice 2
Today’s Spotlight is about midwives. We look at the different services they provide to pregnant women. We examine the debate surrounding midwifery. We talk about why some pregnant women prefer working with a midwife rather than a hospital. We discuss the rise in popularity of midwives.
Voice 1
The word “midwife” means “with woman.” Until about two hundred years ago, the person that was with a pregnant woman during birth was a midwife. Midwives are even mentioned in the book of Exodus in the Bible. They go to women’s homes and check on them during pregnancy. They deliver their babies. Midwives gained their knowledge through experience. They also learned from other midwives. They had limited formal training. They did not receive much, if any, pay.
Voice 2
When the professional medical community realized they could make money from childbirth, they took control. They said midwives did not know enough to deliver babies safely. All over the world, male doctors took over the practice of childbirth.
Voice 1
Male doctors replaced female midwives in the United States in the nineteenth century. By the 1960s, 97% of births in the United States occurred in hospitals.
Voice 2
But things began to change. The Women’s Liberation Movement became popular around the world from the 1960s to the 1980s. Women pushed for equal treatment and opportunities in areas like employment and family. Midwives started receiving formal training. Midwifery schools opened. Midwives started gaining more respect and trust.
Voice 1
Today, midwives in the United States handle over 430,000 births each year. In Germany, midwives attend 700,000 births a year. In England, midwives attend over 230,000 births a year.
Voice 2
There are many reasons why women are now choosing to use a midwife. One of the biggest reasons is control. Kay Lineweaver’s first baby was breech. Her baby’s buttocks or feet would come out first rather than the head. Lineweaver’s doctor would not allow her to give birth naturally. He made her have a cesarean section. He cut through Lineweaver’s stomach to deliver the baby.
Lineweaver said:
Voice 3
“The doctor would not even give me the option.”
Voice 1
Lineweaver said the birth process was like a bad dream. She did not feel like she was in control. For her second baby, she was determined to have a natural birth. But the doctor told her that the scar from her surgery could tear. A natural birth could damage her uterus. This could threaten her life or her baby’s life. No doctor at any hospital in her area would allow her to have a natural birth. So, she chose a midwife to deliver her baby. The midwife allowed Lineweaver to have a natural birth. Her child’s birth was easy and successful. In fact, Lineweaver said the environment was calmer than when she had her first child at the hospital. Lineweaver said:
Voice 3
“I am a big believer that how you are brought into this world helps shape the person that you become.”
Voice 2
By using a midwife, the mother can have her baby in the comfort of her own home. She gets more time with a midwife during her pregnancy. She may only get fifteen minutes with a doctor during a hospital visit. But she could get an hour with a midwife. During a midwife-assisted birth, she can have her entire family nearby. If she chooses, she can have a pool birth. This is when she stays in water during the delivery. This process can make birthing easier, calmer, and even less painful.
Voice 1
Some groups, like the Amish, prefer using midwives to deliver their babies. This special group of Christians tries to live simply and plainly. They farm for a living. They build their own houses and barns. They dress in traditional, dark clothes. The Amish do not use cars, electricity, or phones. They travel by horse and wagon. They work and marry within their communities.
Voice 2
The Amish believe that childbirth is a natural process. They think that labor should happen with as little medical care as possible. A midwife offers a woman more private, personal care than a hospital setting. The midwife can visit them on their farm. It is difficult for the Amish to travel back and forth to a hospital since they do not use cars.
Voice 1
The Amish do not have much money. Often, hospitals charge more than midwives. The Amish usually have large families with eight to twelve children. Using a hospital for each birth would be expensive.
Voice 2
Tracey Moore has worked as a midwife in Kentucky for over twenty years. She serves several Amish communities. She has attended 1,200 births. The Amish communities completely trust Moore. Some see her as part of their families. She gives them extra attention that a doctor would not have time to offer. She once cared for a woman named Laura who might have seemed rude to others because of how she answered questions. But Moore spent extra time with her. She got to know her. She noticed that Laura suffered from hearing difficulties. Moore helped Laura get hearing aids that changed her life.
Voice 1
Because Moore knows the Amish communities so well, she can suggest specific diet plans for each expectant mother. She knows what and how they farm. She can change her advice to make sure the mother gets enough vitamins during her pregnancy.
Voice 2
Moore went to see another Amish woman named Edith. While visiting her, Moore discovered that Edith’s daughter was severely anemic. She had a low number of red blood cells which challenged her oxygen supply. Moore recognized that the daughter needed extra care. Moore said:
Voice 4
“By bringing healthcare into the home and understanding their culture, I was able to fit my care to their actual needs. Midwifery carries the care to the client.”
Voice 1
Do you know someone who used a midwife to deliver their baby? Would you consider using a midwife rather than a hospital? You can leave a comment on our website at www.spotlightrnglish.com. You can also find us on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and X. You can also get our programs delivered directly to your Android or Apple device through our free official Spotlight English app.
Voice 2
The writer of this program was Peter Anderson. The producer was Michio Ozaki. The voices you heard were from the United Kingdom and the United States. All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. No A.I., or artificial intelligence, was used in this program. Spotlight programs are written, voiced, and produced by real people for real people, no matter where in the world they live. This program is called, “Call the Midwife.”
Voice 1
We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program.
Goodbye.
Question
Do you know someone who used a midwife to deliver their baby? Would you consider using a midwife rather than a hospital?
