{"id":21948,"date":"2021-01-29T09:31:19","date_gmt":"2021-01-29T08:31:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/babywellnessfoundation.org\/come-comincia-vita\/capitolo-11-scegliere-il-luogo-della-nascita\/"},"modified":"2025-08-06T09:19:24","modified_gmt":"2025-08-06T08:19:24","slug":"chapter-11-choosing-the-place-of-birth","status":"publish","type":"come-comincia-vita","link":"https:\/\/babywellnessfoundation.org\/en\/come-comincia-vita\/chapter-11-choosing-the-place-of-birth\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 11 \u2013 Choosing the place of birth"},"content":{"rendered":"

The birth of a child marks the culmination of a nine-month journey.<\/strong> If the pregnancy has followed a physiological course, the expectant mother and the baby are in good health,<\/strong> the baby is full-term, well-developed, and in a cephalic position. In the absence of high-risk factors, the birth is also expected to be physiological. These are conditions present in the majority of births.<\/strong><\/p>\n

That\u2019s why it\u2019s important to tailor childbirth assistance based on obstetric risk, to ensure it is always appropriate.<\/strong> Just as it\u2019s done during pregnancy \u2014 where care varies according to the risk of complications and the health of the woman and fetus \u2014 assistance during labor must not be excessive nor insufficient. However, risk is a dynamic parameter, which can change over time and must be continuously monitored by healthcare professionals. When birth is expected to be physiological, it can be attended solely by a midwife,<\/strong> with maternal and neonatal outcomes equivalent to those of a physician-led delivery, but with fewer invasive interventions (such as cesareans and episiotomies) and greater satisfaction from the mother, who \u2014 with the midwife\u2019s support \u2014 feels more in control and gains confidence in her maternal abilities.<\/p>\n

Giving birth with midwifery-led care is still not possible everywhere in Italy,<\/strong> but only in a few dozen maternity units that have established specific protocols. In these units, a specialist physician is always available but is only called upon by the midwife in case of complications that require medical intervention.<\/p>\n

There are also midwife-led birth centers located within hospitals,<\/strong> but independent from the maternity ward \u2014 such as those at S. Martino Hospital in Genoa, S. Anna Hospital in Turin, Careggi Hospital in Florence, and Spedali Civili in Brescia. These are still rare in Italy.<\/p>\n

There are out-of-hospital, privately managed birth centers, also known as maternity homes,<\/strong> from which the laboring woman can be quickly transferred to a hospital if needed.
\nLastly, there is the option of home birth,<\/strong> assisted by experienced midwives, possible only if there is quick access to a nearby hospital. Except for a few rare cases where hospitals provide home birth services, home births in Italy today are exclusively handled by freelance midwives, many of whom are affiliated with the National Cultural Association of Midwives for Home Birth and Maternity Homes.
\nProvided the women are carefully selected, motivated, and assisted by qualified professionals, those who plan a home birth or choose a maternity home have the same health outcomes as those who give birth in hospitals (28).<\/p>\n\t\t

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