ABSTRACT
The Birth with No Regret Team is a new model of birth care in Turkey that is well worth replicating elsewhere. The mother is cared for by a team both in her pregnancy and in her birth. In Turkey, the cesarean rate jumped rapidly from 5.7% in 1998 to 21.2% in 2008, and to 53% in 2016. Like all other countries where the cesarean rate is high, the main responsibility for birth falls on the obstetrician. He/she is not only a doctor but often feels pressured to function as midwife, doula and psychologist because the mother is asking for more and more intervention. Most obstetricians are extremely overworked and underpaid. In pregnancies generally considered “high-risk” by Turkish obstetricians (breech, VBAC, large baby, post-dates, twins) the preferred approach is the planned cesarean- less time, less responsibility, fewer problems for the doctor.
