ABSTRACT
In this chapter, Hannah Dahlen interviewed Melissa Cheyney, Associate Professor of Medical and Reproductive Anthropology at the University of Oregon (USA). Melissa began her career as a Medical Anthropologist and then trained to be a midwife. She is now a researcher who is undertaking in-depth examinations of homebirth in the USA. She still practises as a midwife supporting women to give birth at home. Her broader perspective on the issue of women birthing outside the system makes her an ideal person to contribute to this book. I (Hannah) had the pleasure of interviewing Melissa when I was in the UK recently attending the Normal Labour and Birth Conference. We chatted, over tea, about why women choose to give birth out of the system and what strategies may help make our systems more acceptable. In this chapter, Melissa discusses her practice as a midwife and some of the women she has cared for who taught her about why birthing outside the system can be so appealing to some. Melissa discusses the need for socially and culturally aligned relationship-based care, and to move towards a greater reliance on midwifery care – inverting the current dependence on medicalised maternity structures in the USA. Melissa describes why continuity of midwifery care is essential to re-engage women into the system. In order to change the way healthcare is delivered and midwifery supported, Melissa discusses the need to think about funding arrangements and how we can best optimise care that puts women at the centre. Melissa also discusses the importance of interprofessional training that she feels should occur across sites and disciplines.
