1. Health care reform may finally happen....and those who care about babies and young families must speak out. See what Childbirth Connection (a national not-for-profit organization founded in 1918  to improve the quality of maternity care through research, education, advocacy and policy. ) proposes.

2. Listening to Mothers, a survey just released by Childbirth Connection confirms the fact that women are often (or usually) not given accurate and adequate information about the risks and complication of c-sections. 1/3 of the women in the survey, had significant pain at the incision which interfered with breastfeeding. Since 38% of women reported it "too hard to get breastfeeding going" many mothers found out that placing a baby right on an incision site does not help! 61% of women in the survey were left with itching and numbness at the incision site for two months. 

3. Debbi Amis, a leader in the field of childbirth education, provides review of upcoming changes for hospitals who deliver babies... "Effective April 2010, hospitals accredited by the Joint Commission will be required to report on new perinatal quality measures which include the number of elective deliveries (both vaginal and cesarean) performed before 39 completed weeks gestation; cesarean rate for low-risk first birth women; and the number of women exclusively breastfeeding at hospital discharge. These new measures are based on measures endorsed by the National Quality Forum (NQF). Hospitals will want to minimize the number of elective deliveries performed before 39 weeks and the cesarean rate for low-risk first birth women, and to maximize the number of women exclusively breastfeeding at discharge. How will these new quality measures affect childbirth education?"  Read On...

4. Read about Washington DC midwife who saves lives and money for the city...There's wisdom here for those interested in healthcare reform.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/08/eveningnews/main4428250.shtml