Karen Brody’s play Birth is coming to Cincinnati August 29-31. More information in this Cincinnati Community Press article or see the Birth & Beyond website.

The issues, problems, and controversies around modern maternity care continue to make headlines. This ABC News feature discusses the dearth of natural childbirth while looking at a mom whose unexpected early labor caused her to give birth in a Cincinnati hospital instead of the NY birth center she’d planned on. “As labor pains increased and Speier asked about breathing techniques, the doctor replied, “How do I know? I’ve only ever done two [natural childbirths].” The article goes on to talk about the risks of medicalizing normal childbirth and the rising cesarean rate, as well as the advantages of midwifery care.

Anyone interested in helping Ohio families maintain legal access to out-of-hospital midwifery care is warmly invited to join the Ohio Families for Safe Birth board in Columbus for a statewide meeting and grassroots training session. Recent trends in our state and nationwide mean that without a strong, coordinated consumer effort, midwifery is likely to become illegal in Ohio. If you or anyone you care about may be impacted by this, please come learn about the issues and how you can help.

WHEN: Saturday, July 26, 2008 from 1 - 5 PM

WHERE: Trinity Lutheran Church, 404 S. Third Street, Columbus, OH 43215. It is right off I-70 and I-71 (they are combined through downtown Columbus). Parking is available in the back.

View Larger Map

TOPICS TO BE COVERED INCLUDE:

Introduction to Ohio Families for Safe Birth: history, mission, meet the Board

Coalition Partners (Ohio Midwives Alliance and Ohio Physicians for Midwives)

Mini-workshop on Publicity and Outreach

Mini-workshop on Legislative Efforts (past and future)

Mini-workshop on Fundraising

RSVP to Kathy Skestos at kathleen@skestos.com if you plan to come. Depending on what part of the state you are coming from, it may be possible to arrange carpooling with someone else from your area.

Comfest 2008 was a great success! We collected nearly 50 signatures from individual supporters and made great connections with other grassroots organizations who will likely sign on to our coalition. We will be following up soon with everyone we spoke to as we get the ball rolling on our legislative campaign. Thanks to the CHOICE midwives for letting us use their booth space, and to the volunteers who handed out information and encouraged folks to sign up!

The Columbus chapter of Ohio Families for Safe Birth is at Columbus’s Community Festival this weekend (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, June 27-29) handing out flyers and signing up supporters of our legislative campaign for legal out-of-hospital childbirth options in Ohio. If you’re going to be there, look for them at the CHOICE booth. Hopefully we’ll get some pictures and a report next week!

Jennifer Block, author of Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care, toured Ohio this week, signing books and sharing her message about the serious flaws in our maternity care system. OFSB was involved in two events, in Columbus Wednesday evening and Cincinnati Thursday evening. Turnout was excellent despite bad weather and bad traffic and a crowded room listened intently as Jennifer explained how she had become interested in childbirth options as a feminist and an investigative journalist, and described the “painful truths” she had learned in the process of researching and writing her book.

Jennifer Block speaking in Cincinnati:

At least 80 people braved a heavy downpour and miserable traffic to fill our venue in Cincinnati to standing room only:

The question-and-answer session after Jennifer’s presentation became a stimulating discussion and it was clear that everyone in the room is concerned about the critical issues facing our maternity care system and eager to work for change. We were excited to be able to officially announce a new development in OFSB’s campaign for better maternity care options in Ohio: Ohio Physicians for Midwives. Founding OB/GYN Dr. Daniel Bowen addressed the crowd before Jennifer Block’s Cincinnati performance. He acknowledged the vital work of the coalition and explained our desire to recruit supportive physicians of all specialties to join together in supporting access to licensed out-of-hospital midwifery care for Ohio mothers. He also flatly refuted the recent ACOG statement opposing home birth as “trendy”, recognizing that families who choose home birth have made a carefully researched, reasonable decision and that midwives attending home births are skilled clinicians whose standard of care is excellent.

The Ohio Physicians for Midwives web page is still being updated, and should have many more resources available in the coming weeks. We are completing an information packet to send to potential physician members, which will include Dr. Bowen’s letter inviting them to join OPFM and support midwifery licensure in Ohio. There is already a form on the website which allows anyone to fill in their physician’s contact information to have a packet sent to them, and we will soon also have the option of requesting a packet that you can hand-deliver and discuss with your physician in person. As more members join OPFM, the web page will also become a means of linking families with care providers who respect their decision-making rights and support their choices.

Dr. Bowen has been an invaluable resource to home birthing families in the Cincinnati area for many years, and his desire to take a public stand on this important issue is appreciated and applauded by all of us at OFSB.

OFSB would also like to thank all of the volunteers who put their time and efforts into making the Jennifer Block events, both in Cincinnati and Columbus, a great success. We also appreciate the support of the local businesses who helped to sponsor the Cincinnati event.

Bargain Hunt in Beautiful Yellow Springs this Weekend!

OFSB YARD SALE AND PANCAKE BREAKFAST

Saturday, May 17th

202 S. Winter St.
Yellow Springs, OH 45387

on the corner of Dayton and Winter St

Children’s, Infant and Maternity Items and Household Goods for Sale

Really delicious whole grain pancakes with real maple syrup, farm-fresh sausage and more!

Event begins at 9am, breakfast ends at 1pm

There will be yard sales all over Yellow Springs and Glen Helen today!

This is a guest post from Amy Wakeling of the Columbus area OFSB chapter.

Our Lobby Day group on the steps of the Capitol.
On May 6th, 2008, an absolutely beautiful day, midwives and consumers from Akron, Dayton, Heath, Chillicothe, Mount Vernon, and Columbus area joined together at the Ohio Statehouse in honor of International Midwives Day (May 5th). I heard a few people even got up at 5:30 a.m. to come! There was a lot of hard work put into this event by the Columbus OFSB members, specifically, ICAN representative for OFSB, Kathy Skestos; Martha Nieset, Peggy Hutchinson, and Leah Hobbs, the Columbus OFSB Chapter leader. Thank you all for your dedication and all the time you volunteered to make this event a huge success!

Many of us were met with encouraging support for our cause. It was a really fun day, and for those of us that had never done this before, once we got past the first one or two, we realized just how easy this is! The organizers of the event had prepared baby gift bags for us filled with everything we needed, and had a nice talking points sheet ready for us which made it a lot easier. We handed each person we spoke with a fact sheet and some M&M’s (Moms and Midwives) and answered any brief question they may have had.

Governor Ted Strickland with OFSB members Amy Wakeling and Kerry Ratcliffe, and Kerry’s daughter Lilly.
The babies were a huge hit;) One of the ladies who called back to the Representative, said “Representative ______, you’ve got to get out here, the babies are here!” They loved them and I think we would be welcomed back any time! We are already brainstorming for ways to improve ourselves for next time! One thing we would really encourage for next time is to make sure we have representation from the entire state. Legislators count on their constituents to provide the information they need to make an informed decision on which position to take. As the consumers, we really need to make sure YOUR Representatives know who you are. If you haven’t done so already, please take a few minutes to write to your representative and tell them just how important this issue is to you!

Happy International Midwives Day! We’ve made great progress in the past year toward our goal of making midwifery a legally recognized, licensed, and accessibly option for Ohio families. With your help, the next year will be even better.

It’s not too late to come out for OFSB’s first International Midwives Day Lobby Day. Because the Ohio Legislature is not in session today, OFSB members are meeting at the Capitol tomorrow, May 6th. This is a perfect opportunity to come to Columbus, get to know the Capitol grounds, see where your elected officials’ offices are, meet the front office folks and have a low-stakes conversation about midwifery.

It’s the best way to dip your toe in the pool, so to speak, and ease into advocacy and lobbying. In order to combat the power of organized medicine, we have to be able to rally our troops to come to Columbus and make an impression! If you come this time, you go back home and tell all your friends how easy it is so we can multiply our numbers next time we have a lobby day.

The rules are simple: Appropriate attire is casual business type clothing. We need to look mainstream to the folks we meet so as to present the fewest possible barriers to communicating and building relationships. Shoes should be comfortable for considerable walking. Children are welcome (and will make you memorable!).

Our amazing organizers will supply you with the talking points, candy and other pieces of information that you’ll need to know. RSVPing isn’t required, but….if you do, we’ll be able to have information available specific to your legislative delegation. So, let us know you’re coming and who you’re bringing with you! Email:
Kathy Skestos (kathleen@skestos.com)
Martha Nieset (marthanieset@gmail.com)

The currently planned schedule (possibly subject to change):

9 - 10 am Welcome and Briefing
10 am - Noon Visit Representatives’ Offices
Noon - 1 pm Lunch: Meet up with others from our group, De-briefing
1-2:30 pm Visit Representatives’ Offices OR Attend Legislative Session
2:30-3 pm De-briefing

IF YOU DECIDE TO COME AT THE LAST MINUTE YOU WILL BE WELCOMED!

BRING YOUR CELL PHONE AND CAMERA So you can call Kathy or Martha if you run into any difficulties, are asked any questions you don’t know how to answer, etc. Bring your camera in case you get to meet your legislator. We hope to post some of your Lobby Day pictures on the blog this week - send them to Sora (soracolvin@gmail.com).

WHERE/WHEN TO MEET
Meet at 9 AM in the Columbus City Center Atrium in the City Center Mall (it is mostly empty of stores but still open to the public). The mall is directly SOUTH of the Statehouse, across State Street. The City Center parking garage is directly SOUTH of the Mall. Park in the garage and walk THROUGH THE MALL to find the atrium, which is on the ground floor.

Click here for directions to the City Center Garage.

Click here for a map and directions to the statehouse.

Jennifer Block, author of Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care, will be speaking and signing books in Ohio next month. OFSB is co-sponsor of two of her stops, in Columbus May 14th and Cincinnati May 15th.

Flyers with full details about both events may be downloaded from the OFSB website. Click here for Columbus and here for Cincinnati. Click here to see an OFSB press release about the Cincinnati event.

Local businesses are invited to purchase purchase a sponsorship ad in the program to be distributed at the Cincinnati event. Each attendee will receive a copy of this program. For more information, please contact Pam Bell at womenswisdom@gmail.com or 513-313-2068. Pam notes, ” Ad rates range from $30 for a 1/8 page ad to $170 for a full page ad. Your ad dollars will support OFSB, and like all advertising, is tax-deductible for your business.”

Saturday, April 19, 2008
10 am - 12?
Holiday Inn Akron-West
4073 Medina Rd., Akron 44333

Directions: From 77 (either north or south): Exit at Rte. 18 East. The Holiday inn lies on the north side of the exit.

For more information, contact Jess Brown at jebrown@neo.rr.com.