Classes are being offered to prepare expectant mothers for the possibility of giving birth in their cars or by the roadside, following the closure of a maternity wing at North Devon District Hospital in Barnstaple. The hospital's closure has forced pregnant women to travel more than an hour and a half to Exeter for care.
Approximately 300 women who are at least 34 weeks pregnant or are considered high-risk patients have been contacted to make alternative arrangements. The classes aim to equip couples with the skills to deliver a baby safely in a vehicle, such as on a motorway or parked on a hard shoulder, if labor begins unexpectedly.
"It's about trying to create the birth environment that you would normally have in the hospital or at home, in your car," said antenatal teacher Catherine Mchomvu, who is running the sessions.
Hundreds of expectant mothers protested the hospital closure in Barnstaple. Ian Roome, the Liberal Democrat MP for North Devon, called the situation "unacceptable."
Three mothers have shared their experiences of giving birth en route to the hospital.
Laura Luke, 39, gave birth to her second daughter, Hollie, in a car on the driveway of a nearby farm on New Year's Eve 2020. She described the experience as surreal but calm. Her husband, Ashley, caught the baby as paramedics were on their way. "The car looked like a murder scene," Luke recalled, noting the difficulty in registering the birth as her car's location. She expressed concern that classes for car births could be dangerous, but her daughter now enjoys the story of her unusual arrival.
Amber Campbell, 48, delivered her son by the roadside outside St. Mary's Hospital in London in September 2014. Her labor was unexpectedly rapid. Despite her husband driving through road cones to reach the hospital entrance, they stopped short. Campbell found herself alone in the car, crowning and delivering her son herself. She managed to unwrap the umbilical cord from around his neck. The experience, while terrifying, also brought a profound sense of connection. Her son's place of birth was registered as the street outside the hospital.
Gemma Moroney, 45, gave birth on a car park floor in Brighton after her mother-in-law, who was driving, took a longer route and encountered traffic delays. "Don’t you dare have that baby in this car!" her mother-in-law exclaimed as labor progressed rapidly. Paramedics arrived just as her daughter was born on the tarmac. Moroney recalled being furious that her pedicure was ruined, while her mother-in-law was traumatized by the event for weeks.