• To increase public awareness of birth as a natural event rather than a medical problem and to present home birth as a viable option.

• To work towards the re-integration of domiciliary births into the general maternity services.

• To provide practical support and assistance to parents who choose home birth.

• To advise parents as to their legal rights to have a home birth and in particular, to inform them of the Health Board's statutory obligations to provide them with medical and midwifery services.

• To monitor Health Board practices in discharging their obligations under the Health Acts with regard to home birth.

• To support parents, as far as is practicable, in their legitimate demands for services from the Health authorities.

• To promote and work towards the provision of:

(i) comprehensive midwifery and medical services for domiciliary births throughout the country.

(ii) training for domiciliary midwives.

• To liaise with organisations, such as the Association for Improvements in Maternity Services, the Irish Childbirth Trust, La Leche League etc., active in the area of childbirth whose aims and activities run parallel to those of the Association.

• To compile information on home births, particularly as they occur among members, whilst paying due regard to the confidentiality of the members' enquiries.

• To encourage and where appropriate, to participate in research in this area.

• To promote a wider understanding of home births through the provision of the Association's newsletter*, the organisation of group meetings and through contact with the media.

• To initiate and/or maintain regular contact on behalf of the members with the health authorities and other statutory bodies such as VHI, with professional organisations such as the Irish Nurses Organisation, and with personnel working in the maternity services.

• The newsletter is a quarterly publication giving updates on developments with the Health Boards, midwives information, birth accounts, childbirth related events and more.

In addition, more recent concerns include:

• The provision of information for use in schools and to give talks, workshops in schools, women's groups, ante-natal classes etc.

• Supporting the campaign for lower insurance for GPs willing to attend home births.

• Giving information to persons wishing to practice domiciliary midwifery, supporting the establishment of domiciliary midwife group practices and the Midwives Association of Ireland.

• Supporting the introduction of "Domino" schemes as in the UK.

• Lobbying for changes in midwifery training eg. inclusion of practical domiciliary training, direct entry courses etc.

• The reintroduction of the "Flying squad" to provide midwives with emergency back-up.

• The required increase in the Health Board's fee to domiciliary midwives.

Top

• Responding to daily enquiries by telephone and   post from a growing number of prospective   parents, midwives, student midwives and   transition year secondary school students   (approx. 500 a year).

• Organising our own annual conferences and    attending other childbirth-related events.

• Making on-going reviews of available   information.

• Making submissions to the Minister for Health   to rectify inequities in the health system with   regard to home births (1992 and 1993 copies   available from the HBA library).

• We made a submission to and met with the   Mother and Infant Care Scheme Review Group   in March 1993. This report was published in   April '97.

• We made a submission to the "Developing a   Policy for Women's Health - a Discussion   Document 1995". From this "A Plan for   Women's Health" was published in April '97.   Both the report and the plan recommend   establishing pilot schemes to provide for home   births. We are seeking to be represented on the   Expert Group which will formulate these   schemes.

• We made submissions to the Community   Nursing Review Group on the role and   responsibilities of Public Health Nurses (all   P.H.N.s are qualified midwives) in March 1995.

• We made a submission to the National Policy   for Breast-feeding in Ireland, in Spring 1995,   about the important role played by the   domiciliary midwife in establishing
  breast-feeding.

• We conducted a survey amongst our members   regarding breast-feeding and the influence, if   any, having a home birth had on infant feeding.

• In May 1995 we became affiliated to the   National Women's Council of Ireland (formerly   the Council for the Status of Women).

• We applied to the Health Promotion Unit for   funding for information leaflets in April 1995   without success.

• We collected over 600 signatures in 1996,   calling on the Department of Health to provide   clear, unbiased information on all birth options,   so parents can make informed choices. The   Minister for Health Michael Noonan refused to   meet us to accept them.

The Home Birth Association has fulfilled all of these functions without any state financial support.