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Water massages and queen-sized beds: Hospitals adapt to rise in home births in Kent County

Kent County has the highest rate of home births in the state. In 2016 nearly 18 percent of moms chose a home birth.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Mom of four Karen Neumair has her hands full, with three girls: Hannah, 9; Becca, 7; Lizzy, 4 and new brother Caleb.

Like most moms, Karen looked forward to welcoming each of her children into the world. Her first two were born in the hospital, "They were OK experiences, but they really didn't go quite like I had hoped they would."

So, when Lizzy came along, Karen looked for an alternative, "I specifically wanted someone who was going to both listen to me and trust me to know what was best for me personally."

Karen chose a home birth for her third daughter Lizzy. And found the experience she was looking for, "My home birth was fantastic it was probably one of the highlights of my life. I just felt so powerful afterward and it was just absolutely incredible."

And Karen isn't alone in that experience. Home births are on the rise. In fact, according to The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, Kent County has the highest rate of home births in the state. In 2016 nearly 18 percent of moms chose a home birth.

And hospitals are taking notice, "So, we asked how can we do what we do different to be able to support that particular population of women." Annie Evans is the Labor and Delivery Nurse Manage with Spectrum Health and she says they got quite a list.

“They wanted a more natural feel to the room. The wanted a real bed, they wanted comfortable accommodations for their loved ones," Evans explained. "They didn't want to see a lot of hospital equipment around the room they wanted softer materials, softer colors. They wanted the freedom to be able to move around."

Spectrum Health created Natural Birthing Suite with a queen size bed and medical equipment discretely hidden. Evans says the room also allows expectant moms to use a Spectrum Health Midwife Nurse for delivery, "We've grown that practice and will continue grow adding more midwives in the medical group through Spectrum Health."

Evans says they are starting to see a change, "Those mother's that would typically seek out a home birth somewhere else in another type of birthing center have now reached out to us."

Including Karen Neumair, who had her fourth child Caleb at Spectrum's new home birthing room, "I was able to have that calm quietly uninterrupted time to focus on what I needed to do to work through my labor and contractions."

Karen adds it was with minimal medical intervention, "It was really only once an hour or two and once they were done with that they were done."

If medical intervention is needed, Evans says it's there. “In that their level of monitoring had to increase because something was going on with their labor. We needed to watch the baby a little bit further, or they were getting an epidural or they needed a different level of intervention.”

Spectrum's new birthing option gave Karen the freedom to experience her son's birth in a natural and safe way, and she says "I'm so thankful that I had that option this time."

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