Midwife-Led Delivery Room

Many expectant parents ask themselves: Where should our child be born? An alternative to the traditional delivery room or birthing center is the midwife-led delivery room. This option is primarily intended for healthy pregnant women without risk factors who, following an uneventful pregnancy, expect an uncomplicated birth. In this article, we’ll explain what makes this care model special and who it’s suitable for.

A midwife-led delivery room combines the safety of a modern birthing center with personalized care from experienced midwives. This is a particularly good choice for healthy pregnant women who want a natural and self-directed birth.

In a midwife-led delivery room, the entire birth is managed independently by experienced midwives, without routine medical interventions or constant technical monitoring. 

In the event of complications, doctors can be called in at any time, as the midwife-led delivery room is affiliated with a maternity clinic, ensuring medical safety at all times.

The basic principle of the midwife-led delivery room is based on one-on-one care, with one midwife providing individualized and continuous care to an expectant mother. The atmosphere is often calmer and more intimate. The focus is on trusting the natural birthing process.

Natural methods are primarily used for pain relief, such as movement and various birthing positions, breathing techniques, massage, and acupuncture, as well as water (bathtub). Intravenous pain medication during labor or an epidural (epidural anesthesia) is not used in the midwife-led delivery room.

The specific services offered may vary depending on the facility. Please inquire directly with the facility of your choice.

Many parents particularly value the personalized care and greater say in decision-making:

• One-on-one care is provided. This means that a midwife accompanies the woman in labor through all stages of childbirth.
• The atmosphere is often described as more relaxed, familiar, and intimate. This promotes natural childbirth and the well-being of the woman giving birth.
• Doctors are not present in the midwife-led delivery room, but are available at any time. Should complications arise, the mother is immediately transferred to physician-led care without having to change locations. This ensures the highest level of safety for both mother and child.

Giving birth in the midwife-led delivery room is suitable for women with an uncomplicated pregnancy.

Whether giving birth in the midwife-led delivery room is possible is determined during several appointments: An initial consultation usually takes place between the 24th and 30th week. During this consultation, we assess whether the criteria for giving birth in the midwife-led delivery room are met. During this preliminary consultation, the course of the pregnancy and the expectant mother’s wishes regarding the birth are discussed.

Another consultation takes place around the 36th week of pregnancy to reassess whether the conditions for a midwife-led birth are met. 

In certain cases, a midwife-led birth is not possible, for example, in cases of

• certain pre-existing conditions, such as type 1 diabetes or gestational diabetes,
• twins or multiple births,
• high blood pressure,
• severe obesity,
• abnormal test results,
• complications during previous births.

Important: Due to high demand, spots are often limited. It is therefore worth finding out more as early as possible.

Just as with a birth in a traditional delivery room, the costs of giving birth in a midwife-led delivery room are covered by both public and private health insurance plans.

Additional services may be subject to individual fees.