Charlie Rae Young of Barefoot Birth has allegedly presided over a preventable homebirth disaster and preventable homebirth death in a little more than a year.
You may remember Charlie Rae from this debacle, What kind of mother claims she “rocked” a birth that nearly killed her baby?
…I totally rocked by HBAC with my cesarean baby by my side and then about an hour later, my new love began having breathing issues. He has meconium aspiration syndrome and we have been admitted to the nicu. We are likely to be here for a week or more so he can fully recover…
I will share the birth story once we’re home again. It was so amazing and empowering!
The homebirth midwife boasted about her handling of the disaster:
A hypoxic event in utero, Charlie Rae? Ya think? How is it that you had no idea of the hypoxic event until after he was born? It was your responsibility to prevent it.
In July Charlie Rae presided over the death of a baby from shoulder dystocia. Allegedly, according to a source:
She was 42w and wouldn’t go to the hospital even though her husband and parents wanted her to. Baby was 10lbs 14oz, had shoulder dystocia and paramedics were called. It took 8 minutes for the paramedics to arrive. Baby was not breathing when hey got there, but they ripped him out and worked on him and he was breathing/alive. I don’t know exactly how long he was alive before he passed, at least a couple of hours though. She had to have 3.5 hours of surgery to repair everything. They even considered a hysterectomy because of the extent of soft tissue damage, but they were able to save her uterus.
Astoundingly, Charlie Rae took to social media to whine about how hard the birth was for her!
Being a #midwife is hard. No one is ever guaranteed a baby to bring home. The impact that leaves in a community happens in waves. While it is heavy and sad and leaves you searching for answers where there often are none, it is also a reminder that none of us are doing life alone. Paxton is a boy who was only here for a short while – he is so loved and so missed. He brought so many people together, so much light into a dark place and left so many people with such a palpable impact. We walk with families through so much joy but also so much sorrow – and THAT is what #midwifery is. It is being with families and holding space for whatever unfolds. I am honored every day I am able to do this work – no matter how unfair it can seem sometimes…
It’s unfair, Charlie Rae, but not for you. It’s unfair for the babies who suffer from your hubris, ignorance and lack of skill. Paxton did not have to die. He would probably be alive today had his mother not attempted a homebirth.
Does Paxton’s mother blame Charlie Rae or herself for this utterly preventable horror?
Surely you’re joking!
…Thank you for being willing to be vulnerable and honest. Thank you for honoring Paxton’s birth and life in this way. I am so thankful for you. Thank you for loving him and for loving us. I don’t want to imagine walking through this with anyone else …
But she didn’t have to go through this. It was HER decision to give birth at home far from expert medical assistance, HER decision to hire a poorly educated, poorly trained pretend “midwife,” HER decision to ignore her husband and family to risk Paxton’s life.
Ironically, Paxton’s mother was apparently willing to accept high tech medical care for HERSELF to save her perineum and uterus in the wake of the shoulder dystocia, though she denied Paxton the very same level of care that could have saved his life.
Florida, could you please investigate this homebirth midwife. At a minimum, she needs extra education and training in managing high risk situations and referring high risk patients to hospitals.
Exactly how many babies have to suffer serious injuries or die before we make the substandard homebirth midwifery credential illegal and require that all midwives meet the international standards of education and training met by US certified nurse midwives and midwives in all other first world countries?
If Charlie Rae Young isn’t considered qualified to practice midwifery in the Netherlands, the UK, Canada or Australia, why is she considered qualified by the State of Florida?
