Born at Fairview Riverside in Minneapolis, Minnesota | A Hospital Transfer Birth Story in Photographs | Photography by Gather Birth Cooperative

August 17, 2019 | 4:57 am

We are so lucky here in the Twin Cities. Minneapolis and St. Paul have a generous selection of hospitals and free-standing birth centers to choose from when deciding where to labor and deliver. Not only that, but Minnesota makes it easy to access home birth midwives, if the idea of birthing in your home seems more appealing.

Many people hear about families choosing to give birth in a place other than a hospital and feel nervous. Sadly, there is a lot of misunderstanding around out-of-hospital birth, mostly thinking that it’s an unsafe option without first gathering all the information. As doulas and birth photographers who have attended many births in the Twin Cities, we’ve seen many families safely labor and deliver their babies in places other than a hospital. In fact, evidence shows that free-standing birth centers may be a safer option for those with uncomplicated pregnancies (a majority of pregnant people), when their care is through a midwife who can transfer care to a hospital if needed. Similarly, recent evidence shows us that birthing at home is not inherently any less safe than birthing at a hospital.

But what do families do if their situation changes and they do need care in a hospital during labor and delivery? Here in the Twin Cities, free-standing birth centers work with hospitals in Minneapolis and St. Paul to transfer a birthing parent’s care. Sometimes, a family can continue to receive care from their existing midwives at the hospital, other times the care is transferred to midwives on-staff at the location. In situations where it’s appropriate, a family’s care may even be transferred to an OBGYN for the remainder of their labor and birth.

Reasons a birthing person may transfer care to a hospital include: desire to use other medicated pain relief options, signs of destress with the baby that need more intensive monitoring, or complications with the birthing parent, like continuous elevated blood pressure that isn’t resolving. More often than not, when left to progress on it’s own, birth moves with few complications. However, there are definitely times where a person’s labor has become more complicated and should be supported in a hospital.

Midwives are perfectly educated to identify when complications arise. Because a midwife’s education and training is in understanding the normal physiologic process of labor and delivery, it makes it clear when complications may arise. In those instances, including the birth you see her, a transfer of care becomes the safest way to have a baby.

It’s really amazing to see the expertise the midwives here in the Twin Cities have when supporting our local Minneapolis and St. Paul families. Not only are they adept at supporting births in the birth center and home birth setting, they’re able to successfully and empathetically help people adjust their care to a hospital, in the rare circumstance it is required. As doulas and photographers, we always appreciate the way a midwife can help a family receive appropriate care, while also honoring the big change in plans that happens by changing locations. It’s beautiful to see a birthing parent’s hopes and dreams for their birth protected as importantly as their physical health and that of their baby.