Below is an excerpt from the International Mother Baby Childbirth Organization (IMBCO) July 2011 Newsletter welcoming Healthy Mother as the 9th member of the global Mother Baby Network (MBNET).
INDIA WELCOME
IMBCO is pleased to welcome Healthy Mother Wellness & Care of India as its ninth member of the global MotherBaby Network (MBNet). Healthy Mother Wellness & Care was selected to join MBNet as it leads India in comprehensive maternal and newborn care based in the midwifery model. IMBCO board member Robbie Davis-Floyd commends Healthy Mother for its approach, stating that they “represent the global vanguard of compassionate, humanistic, and evidence-based care in childbirth and constitute a model we hope many others will replicate.” Since its opening in June, 2009, Healthy Mother Wellness & Care has maintained normal birth rates of nearly 85%, which are among the highest in India.
Healthy Mother Wellness & Care operates two sites, one in Hyderabad and Bangalore, and provides Lamaze-certified childbirth education classes, certified Lamaze teacher training workshops, breastfeeding support, and postnatal return to fitness programs. They also operate the Santcum, or natural birthing center, where “women have access to a full range of services from prenatal checkups to labor support, support for natural birthing, and postpartum care, assisted by a team of midwives, doulas, nurses and backup OB/GYNs” (Sakotal, 2011).
According to a recent Lancet article, India experiences the “world’s greatest burden of maternal, newborn, and child deaths. In 2008, 1.8 million children [under 5 years], including 1 million neonates died, and 68,000 mothers died” (Paual, Sachdev, Mavalankar, Ramachandran 2011…p.332). It is IMBCO’s hope that the high-quality care executed at Healthy Mother Wellness & Care will demonstrate the potential to improve maternal and infant health services for families in India through providing high-quality, cost effective, and midwifery-based care. IMBCO looks forward to Healthy Mother’s future contributions to MBNet and to the women, babies, and families of India.
Healthy Mother’s Dr. Vijaya Krishnan said” We thank IMBCO, Robbie Davis-Floyd and Rae Davis for their support in helping us bring about positive change in birth practices in India. We are effective change one mother at a time and are playing a leading role, along with other like minded individuals and organizations in giving back to mothers and right to give birth on their own without unnecessary interventions”