TIME is On Our Side

Check out the article in Time Magazine!
... and be sure to read the "story behind the story" at The Huffington Post

Does this effect women in WNY? Yes it does!

According to the New York State Department of Health, as well as a survey taken by ICAN volunteers says that women in Niagara and OrleansCounties show that three out of the four hospitals with maternity units do NOT offer VBAC as an option for their mothers. These three hospitals are Niagara Falls Memorial, Medina Memorial and Inter-Community Hospital in Newfane. One other hospital, Mount St. Mary's in Lewiston does claim to offer VBAC as an option, but only 3.4% of women who've had a previous c-section are having them there. These hospitals only handled a total of 1,000 births in 2007, but of that, but it means around 160 women may have been sectioned unnecessarily, subjecting them to unnecessary risk.

What about the women of Erie County? While there are no bans at Women and Children's hospital, Millard Fillmore Suburban, Sisters or Mercy hospital, the rates of women who are having VBACs is on the decline from an overall percentage of 12% in 2006 to 9% in 2007. The most disturbing is Mercy, who is according to the DOH site has a 5.6% VBAC rate, but none of our hospitals are performing up to par.

Cesarean rates at all of these hospitals are high, though this year some have shown minor declines. Overall in Erie county, about 34% percent of women will have the surgery that Consumer Reports has listed as one of the top surgeries you're better off without, and this is up from 33.4% from 2006.

Is this because women are asking for cesareans? Or, could it be that women aren't being well-informed of their choices? Women don't want to talk about the risks because it is too "scary", but we need to start facing what the real possibilities are before making such important decisions.