Let me clarify a bit. I do work within the system. I provide prenatal and gynecological care in on office at a Community Health Center, and I attend births in a tertiary care hospital (complete with NICU, 24 hour anesthesia coverage, and a trauma center/emergency department). My patients have the options of continuous or intermittent fetal monitroing, water for labor and /or birth, epidural and other anesthesia, induction/augmentation of labour, forceps, vacuum, cesareans available as needed without having to be transported to another facility. In some ways that makes what I do easier, on others more difficult. Just because something is available does not mean it has to be used. I work with several obstetricians and a perinatologist, and I train OB residents in normal labor and birth (and also alternative care for some of the variations!). I truly believe that God created women with the innate capacity to give birth, albeit with sweat, toil, and hard work (the translation of the Hebrew etzev from Gen 3:16 and 3:19 - usually translated sorrow or pain for Eve, and sweat or toil for Adam). Yes, sometimes the process goes awry. (sometimes men have heart attacks while shoveling snow, too). I am truly grateful for the assistance that medicine can offer in these cases, saving the lives and health of mothers and babies. I am also grateful for the existance of medical and surgical interventions for other pathology. But I am concerned that we have created a pathology in birthing that is a reflection of our anti-child/perfect child only culture.
I am not sure this is coming out the way I am trying to say it! I am not criticizing decisions or outcomes of any individuals, here. I am expressing my concerns about a trend that I have watched happen, and that I think can be traced back to deeper cultural pathology that may have started several decades ago with the concepts of 'planned parenthood' and 'I am in control of my fate'. We have seen how these attitudes have infected and poisoned our other institutions like marriage, family, the church, government, etc.
