MO - Raheem Gardner dies during birth, midwife charged, 26 Oct 2009

Elaine Marie Diamond who called herself a Midwife is facing Involuntary Manslaughter charges in the death of an infant last October.

The 52 year old woman was texted by the mom on October 26, 2009 that her water broke. Ms. Diamond showed up at some point that night.

O.K. I don't know nothing 'bout birthing no babies, but this poor lady spent three days in labor. She spent two days in the birthing pool in her living room. Areyoukiddinme? This is just me, but that Midwife would have had to hit me over the head with a bat or given me enough drugs to knock out a horse for me to suffer like that.

Into the second day the parents of the baby had asked about going to the hospital. Ms. Diamond said the mom was fine. Nature and all that I guess. The poor baby was born on the way to the hospital. Doctor's have given testimony. Lots of problems.

God keep this little one. Just awful.

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/10/09/2294144/midwife-charged-in-babys-death.html

Filly said:

Elaine Marie Diamond who called herself a Midwife is facing Involuntary Manslaughter charges in the death of an infant last October.

The 52 year old woman was texted by the mom on October 26, 2009 that her water broke. Ms. Diamond showed up at some point that night.

O.K. I don't know nothing 'bout birthing no babies, but this poor lady spent three days in labor. She spent two days in the birthing pool in her living room. Areyoukiddinme? This is just me, but that Midwife would have had to hit me over the head with a bat or given me enough drugs to knock out a horse for me to suffer like that.

Into the second day the parents of the baby had asked about going to the hospital. Ms. Diamond said the mom was fine. Nature and all that I guess. The poor baby was born on the way to the hospital. Doctor's have given testimony. Lots of problems.

God keep this little one. Just awful.

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/10/09/2294144/midwife-charged-in-babys-death.html

Click to expand...

Me too, Filly. Three days in labor is inexcusable. With my second-born, I was in labor for 24 hours. It was intense. I had an epidural that didn't work, so by the time I was supposed to push, I was in so much pain and exhausted beyond belief. I'm trying to imagine that experience going on three times longer. I want to cry for that woman.

I know that there are plenty that advocate for the use of midwives, but I'm just not one of them. During both of my children's births, my doctor saved them after complications arose. I'm not so sure that I would have had the same outcome with a midwife.

I didn't have a midwife, myself, but here you can use a midwife and still deliver in a hospital, and they are under strict guidelines about when emergency medical assistance should be contacted, etc. Here, they are liscenced, and have certified degrees in midwifery.

But I don't think this should be a debate about "midwives", in general, IMO. This woman was calling herself a midwife without credentials - possibly without training.

The real horror of this case (aside from the loss of an innocent child, of course), is this line:

But Pulley said Diamond can still call herself a midwife even if she isn't certified by any organization.

"If she calls herself a midwife, she is a midwife," Pulley said.

Click to expand...

Why the hell isn't there a regulatory board in place??? What kind of training did the woman have? Who was monitoring her practices?

Those are the real issues here, IMO. Trained, certified midwives have not caused problems for any of the many women I knew who chose to use them.

What a sad, horrifying case - torturous for that poor mom.

Also, Filly - nice Gone With the Wind reference!

WhyaDuck? said:

Also, Filly - nice Gone With the Wind reference!

Click to expand...

"Ma says if you put a knife under the bed it cuts the pain in half" This is a horrific situation but will obviously call for us to discuss labor. My own Ma in real life told me "Pull your bottom lip up over the top of your head and then all the way back down to the back of your neck. That's what it feels like".

Advocates of the Ozarks Home Births speak out.

http://www.kspr.com/news/local/kspr-home-birth-advocates-speak-out,0,3211792.story

Five of my grandbabies have been born at home and were helped to enter the world by a wonderful midwife. Three days in labor is very common. Often times a special acupuncturist has been brought in to aid labor but the babies are allowed to come on their own. The have all been whoppers. Nine to twelve pounds with no drugs whatsover. Special teas and herbs and lots of walking.

One baby was born already passed over but she had Beckwith-Wiedemann's Syndrome and the choice was to give birth at home. There was a transport to the hospital for her and she was declared dead at the hospital. It was such a blessing that this little girl was born at home as she was not meant for this world and a hospital would have done "heroic" things to keep her alive. She never took a breath as she was born an angel. I was honored with holding her little body for hours until her Momma and Daddy were prepared to say their goodbyes. The third anniversary of her passing is coming up and the changing leaves always make me dream of her.

Babies have been born and have died at home from the beginning of time. Nothing could be more natural. FWIW, two of my girls spent most of two days in a special tub and one baby was born in that tub. The births were wonderful family events and we even buried the placentas in the back yard. The houses were full of family and friends and new familes in Ashland (belonging to a special group) get all meals delivered for 6 weeks.

We had a grandbaby last week at a hospital in Portland. The Momma went into labor and her water broke. She went to the hospital but was sent home and told to labor at home, thank goodness. My husband and daughter went up to doula and "doulo" (my husband is the BEST) and she labored hard for two days at home. I think they walked that young woman 10 miles. When they finally took her to the hospital, she labored for 50 minutes and out popped the lovely baby girl. She went home within a couple of hours as hospitals are not very healthy places for newborns.

Four days later I learned we're expecting another (am I blessed or what?) and this one will definitely be another home birth. I'm very sorry if this baby had complications but do some reading about what the World Health Organization says about the dangers of hospital births compared to home births by an experienced team of midwives. The US's statistics on maternal and infant mortality is most definitely tied to the number of hospital births. As is the C-section rate. JMO.

Proud Mimi of 9--seven here, one expected, and one in heaven.

WhyaDuck? said:

I didn't have a midwife, myself, but here you can use a midwife and still deliver in a hospital, and they are under strict guidelines about when emergency medical assistance should be contacted, etc. Here, they are liscenced, and have certified degrees in midwifery.

But I don't think this should be a debate about "midwives", in general, IMO. This woman was calling herself a midwife without credentials - possibly without training.

The real horror of this case (aside from the loss of an innocent child, of course), is this line:



Why the hell isn't there a regulatory board in place??? What kind of training did the woman have? Who was monitoring her practices?

Those are the real issues here, IMO. Trained, certified midwives have not caused problems for any of the many women I knew who chose to use them.

What a sad, horrifying case - torturous for that poor mom.

Click to expand...

Amen! My plumber has to pass a test but I can just say, "I'm a midwife." and I am? Hello? WTF is wrong with this world?



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I know that I wouldn't personally have the gonads to have a home birth, but I respect those who do. I ended up with an emergency C-section as we were both in trouble at that point. My hips were not wide enough to allow her to pass (TMI), so we would have both died otherwise. However, you can be transported to a hospital if complications arise. It's a very personal family choice and I can see the advantages of each.

i dont see anything wrongh with home births and using midwives especially in this day and age of hospitals costing so much. I know several people who have chosen this method and had wonderful expieriences. i guess my biggest question is why didnt the parents check out the womans credentials? i cant imagine inviting someone to deliver my baby at home without checking them out first.

westsidefox64 said:

i dont see anything wrongh with home births and using midwives especially in this day and age of hospitals costing so much. I know several people who have chosen this method and had wonderful expieriences. i guess my biggest question is why didnt the parents check out the womans credentials? i cant imagine inviting someone to deliver my baby at home without checking them out first.

Click to expand...

My concern with the midwives without credentials is exactly because of the high cost of care - people might be going to them because they charge less.

I have a distinct lack of gonads when it comes to home births, however, I am considering going for a home birth if I do have another child. (Due to the fact that my last hospital birth was a living nightmare that still gives me nightmares.)

However, I would very carefully check the credentials of anyone that would be assisting in the birth of my child. I check out my doctors, so why wouldn't I check out the midwife? I am not blaming the parents in this situation, so please don't take it that way. I don't quite understand how they found this woman, so if they were referred from someone they trusted, I guess I can understand making an assumption that the other person or agency had already checked her out thoroughly.

As for the midwife herself, I am glad that there are charges being brought. Simply because if you are going to be in the birthing business, you should understand the signs that there is trouble, either with mother or child.
She didn't do that, and from what I have read, it seems that she really didn't know what she was doing...more that she figured she was just there to catch and clean up a baby. Her lack of knowledge coupled with what seems a desire to make money at any cost makes me feel that she is a threat to the community. Definitely the infant community. JMO.

I had my second at home while standing at the foot of my bed it was a million times better than the horrible hospital birth of my first. although my midwife was a real one and not a lady down the street. not that she did anything but "catch"anyways... but I wasnt high risk or whatnot.

the fact is, some babies dont make it in the hospital or at home. some dont make it due to poor choices of midwives, some dont make it due to poor choices of doctors, some dont make it cause they werent meant to.

missizzy is right, 3 days isnt too unusual. but that article didnt give enough info to really know what was going on, if the midwife should have known to transfer to a hospital or not.

I mean...we're mostly girls here eh? 3 stages of labour? being 3 days in the first stage is not such a major deal....3 days stuck in stage three is NOT okay.

Babys die during birth in hospitals all the time. The only difference I see is that at the hospital you sign a waiver saying if anything goes wrong you cant sue. Im not excusing this womans actions at all.I do feel this midwife used poor judgment but so did the parents. Once the parents asked about going to the hospital they should have been taken. What stopped the father or mother from calling 911?
I also agree that with the high costs of medical care more and more people will start choosing home care in birth situations as well as home remedys. Although we arent going to solve that problem on WS.
JMO but I think there was negligence on all sides of this story. 100 years ago a baby dying in a home birth would have been considered a fact of life just like it would have been today if the baby died in the hospital...Forgive me for taking the devils advocate side on this.

http://www.narm.org/index.htm
midwife certification site

I had a hospital birth, simply because I didn't want the mess in my own home - I figured, let the hospital clean that up, thanks. I also liked the idea of a designated ritual space, and for me it was a good experience (and our local birthing centre is first rate, with birthing tubs and stools, etc). I have nothing against either home births or hospital - to each their own. Really it is not about where or how, as much as it is trying to follow the family's wishes and doing it all safely.

My big concern with this story is that the labouring mother seems to have asked about going to a hospital and the midwife continued at home. I think the greatest thing about having a midwife is that they tend to be very responsive to the needs/decisions/requests/instincts of the birthing woman, unlike some conventional medical staff who can sometimes disregard the fact that the mother is a human with concerns, etc.

For me, that is the issue. It's not about slagging midwives, but one uncertified midwife who, with my limited knowledge of what occurred, appears to have let down the key principle of modern midwifery - to listen to the client.

All MOO, naturally.

2goldfish said:

I had my second at home while standing at the foot of my bed it was a million times better than the horrible hospital birth of my first. although my midwife was a real one and not a lady down the street. not that she did anything but "catch"anyways... but I wasnt high risk or whatnot.

the fact is, some babies dont make it in the hospital or at home. some dont make it due to poor choices of midwives, some dont make it due to poor choices of doctors, some dont make it cause they werent meant to.

missizzy is right, 3 days isnt too unusual. but that article didnt give enough info to really know what was going on, if the midwife should have known to transfer to a hospital or not.

I mean...we're mostly girls here eh? 3 stages of labour? being 3 days in the first stage is not such a major deal....3 days stuck in stage three is NOT okay.

Click to expand...

BBM

You make an excellent point here, and knowing that would make a big difference in our understanding of the story. I do think, though, when people refer to "labour" without qualifiers, they do tend to be speaking more of 3rd, or possibly 2nd and 3rd, stage, so that is what I pictured when I read it.

(I was in labour for days, if you include the first stage, but my actual pushing was only about 15 minutes, so I consider my "labour" to have been very fast.)

Poor sweet little one. And my heart breaks for the parents. They trusted someone they shouldn't have. What a burden to carry.

I've not used a midwife for any of my 5 children. I joked about using one after my 1st one. Terrible experience at the hospital. Second one was even worse.
My third almost died and so did I. Placenta previa with massive blood loss, he was blue and not breathing. Attempts to resuscitate him in the delivery room failed. I was barely conscious as all this was going on. The pediatrician in the room held him and ran to the NICU. They brought him back to life. Midwives couldn't have saved him. Or me.

My 4th and 5th were born in Baylor-Dallas. I LOVE this hospital!!! I love my OB-GYN. With these 2 I had an epidural. Boy, what a difference that makes!! :dance: 4th child had a difficult time maintaining her body temperature and we stayed an extra night to watch her. Her normal body temperature is 97.7. Mine is the same way. If the temperature falls below 80 degrees we have a jacket on.
My 5th had the cord tightly around her neck. Every contraction made her heart-rate go way down. It was very scary, but she is perfect!! She did spend an extra night though. She had low blood sugar and had a glucose IV and needed extra monitoring.

I know many women give birth safely with a mid-wife. How sad when something like this happens, with a mid-wife or licensed medical professionals.

And missizzy, prayers for your little angel and congratulations on your growing family.

westsidefox64 said:

Babys die during birth in hospitals all the time. The only difference I see is that at the hospital you sign a waiver saying if anything goes wrong you cant sue. Im not excusing this womans actions at all.I do feel this midwife used poor judgment but so did the parents. Once the parents asked about going to the hospital they should have been taken. What stopped the father or mother from calling 911?
I also agree that with the high costs of medical care more and more people will start choosing home care in birth situations as well as home remedys. Although we arent going to solve that problem on WS.
JMO but I think there was negligence on all sides of this story. 100 years ago a baby dying in a home birth would have been considered a fact of life just like it would have been today if the baby died in the hospital...Forgive me for taking the devils advocate side on this.

Click to expand...

BBM

My concerns are not about people seeking home births as a way to limit costs, which I am fine with - but that uncertified midwifes will likely charge less than certified ones, which may drive people to take unnecessary risks in that they might not really know what they are getting.

hmm, there must be more to this ... like she gave them some kind of guarantees/promises or perpetuated a fraud on them

they knew (or should've known) the risks and where were their extended family (who presumably have more experience with childbirth) to insist they go to the hospital ...

tragic all-around

I don't meant to sound like a hag, and I feel so bad for the parents of the poor baby, but...

At what point do people become responsible for doing their own due diligence? I researched the carp out of my OBGYN before I ever made my 1st appointment with her. I knew everything about my hospital, my OB, and the 2 possible OBs that might be on-call.

I know that things happen that no-one can control, but SURELY there was a way for the parents to check to make sure that this woman was properly trained...

All that being said, I can't even begin to imagine the pain those parents must still be going through... I am sitting here watching my almost-3-month old daughter sleep and I would never survive if something were to happen to her...