ACOG Takes Big Step In Limiting Unnecessary Interventions During Birth

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has released new guidelines encouraging OB-GYNs and other birth practitioners to re-examine the necessity of various interventions that may not necessarily benefit low-risk moms. The new committee opinion does not signal a dramatic shift in best practices for managing uncomplicated labors, but it is a clear acknowledgement from ACOG that technological interventions can often times interfere with a natural process rather than help it along. “This committee opinion is the first one, to my knowledge, that specifically addresses low-risk patients,” author Dr. Jeffrey L. Ecker, chief of the Obstetrics and Gynecology department at Massachusetts General Hospital told The Huffington Post. “It says, very clearly, that there are some times when watchful waiting is appropriate. Just because we have the technology, doesn’t mean it has to be used in every patient.” Many doctors and hospitals already embrace measures to limit intervention when appropriate, he said. But for others, this will likely shift the standard care. The new opinion asserts, for example, that a woman and her health care provider may consider delaying hospital admission until she is five to six centimeters dilated, so long as both she and the fetus are doing well and she and her provider are regularly in touch with one another. The guidelines also call for intermittent fetal heart rate monitoring when appropriate, rather than routine ...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news