- Published: November 13, 2021
- Updated: November 13, 2021
- University / College: Blue Mountains International Hotel Management School (BMIHMS)
- Language: English
- Downloads: 30
Annotated bibliography
Annotated bibliography
De Vries, R., Wiegers, T. A., Smulders, B., & Teijlingen, E. V. (2009). The Dutch Obstetrical System: Vanguard of the Future in Maternity Care. In R. E. Davis-Floyd, L. Barclay, B.-A. Daviss & J. Tritten (Eds.), Birth models that work (pp. 31-53). Los Angeles: University of California Press, Ltd.
In this chapter De Vries (2009) explores the Dutch midwifery system; De Vries is a medical sociologist and a strong proponent of the Dutch system. De Vries (2009) illustrates the history of childbirth in the Netherlands empathizing the importance of home delivery in Dutch society. Compared to western industrialized countries, the Netherlands has a high percentage of home births. 30% of all women in the Netherlands choose to have a home birth, the underlying principle held by the society is that birth is a normal physiological process that needs rarely professional intervention. Inherently, 37% of women are always attended to by an independent midwife. De Vries (2009) highlights that midwives in the Netherlands are some of the best educated midwives in the world as they are trained in a 4 year program that prepares them to practice in different environments. Women that qualify for midwifery care have an option to help women give birth in the hospital environment or at home. This means that regardless of the place, pregnant women are able to choose their midwife. De Vries (2009) also contends that a majority of the midwives work in a group setting and thus enables a sharing of the workload and allows midwives to still have a social life. De Vries (2009) fights the notion that midwives in other countries have become an assistant to the doctor and not to the women who they should help as stipulated by the philosophy of midwifery. While in the Netherlands, due to the political discernment of the midwives, they have been able to hold on the true philosophy of midwifery that the process of childbirth is a normal physiological process perfectly designed by nature.
Reference
De Vries, R., Wiegers, T. A., Smulders, B., & Teijlingen, E. V. (2009). The Dutch Obstetrical System: Vanguard of the Future in Maternity Care. In R. E. Davis-Floyd, L. Barclay, B.-A. Daviss & J. Tritten (Eds.), Birth Models that Work (pp. 31-53). Los Angeles: University of California Press, Ltd.
