How Midwives Learn: Origins of the Home Birth Controversy

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Wendy Kline, PhD
Professor of History, Dema G. Seelye Chair in the History of Medicine
Department of History, Purdue University
Recorded September 23, 2015

Recent media coverage of the increasing popularity of out-of-hospital births in the U.S. has generated a widespread debate about the politics and place of birth. This is not a new phenomenon. In the 1970s, a quiet revolution spread across cities and suburbs, towns and farms, as individuals challenged legal, institutional and medical protocols by choosing unlicensed midwives to catch their babies at home. But just who were these self-proclaimed midwives who seemed to appear overnight, and how did they learn their trade? Because the United States had virtually eliminated midwifery by the mid-twentieth century, most of these newer “rebels” had little knowledge of or exposure to the historic practice, and had to determine for themselves how to define, learn, and teach midwifery skills. This talk examines the creation, controversies, and evolution of the first accredited program for non-nurse midwives in the U.S., the Seattle Midwifery School.

This lecture was part of the 2015-2016 Bioethics Brownbag & Webinar Series, presented by the Center for Ethics.

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How Midwives Learn: Origins of the Home Birth Controversy

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