Folder 11 Home birth statistics, 1982-1996 (WWAT 2000/1)

DMS-symbol     DMS (Inc.)
Accession no.

WWAT 2000/1

Accession title

Domiciliary Midwives Society of New Zealand (Inc.), 1976-2000

Folder title Folder 11 Home birth statistics, 1982-1996
Holdings location Wise Woman Archives Trust (Inc.). Available at wwat.nz

Planned home birth was promoted by domiciliary midwives and the HBAs from at least 1974 and 1978 respectively, as appropriate only for those women who were well, received professional health care throughout the childbirth continuum, had known caregivers, were well nourished, non-smoking and whose babies were at term. Conversely, unplanned out-of-hospital birth could occur when a woman had no antenatal care, was poorly nourished and had a pregnancy complicated by health issues and socio-economic factors. Further, unplanned out-of-hospital birth could occur en route to hospital in taxis, private cars or at home with no or unskilled attendants.

The information to distinguish between planned home birth and unplanned out-of-hospital birth [in New Zealand] was not available from the National Health Statistics Centre (NHSC) data collection [in 1979].[1] Instead all out-of-hospital birth data was tabulated together – planned or unplanned ‘accident’, and planned home birth (Banks, 2007, p. 134).

The Auckland Home Birth Association, under the banner of the New Zealand Home Birth Association, collated the national home birth data for the first time in 1982, which resulted in its Statistical analysis of homebirths in New Zealand, 1974-1982.

From at least 1985 each DMS midwife would fill out a statistical form for each woman she attended. and send it to the Auckland Home Birth Association and this would be included in the annual analysis for New Zealand.This form continued to have more data required over the years. Prior to this midwives collated their own data individually or as a region group.

1996 Home birth statistics

1995 Home birth statistics

1990 Home birth statistics

1989 Home birth statistics

1988 Home birth statistics

1987 Home birth statistics

1986 Home birth statistics

1985 Home birth statistics

1982-1986 Tables 1+2 Home birth statistics

Additional files

20001-11-001 20001-11-002 20001-11-003