It has been a very busy and productive week, spent in Israel. I have had a wonderful day with a group of Palestinian midwives in East Jerusalem (more on this in the next Diary entry) and presented a paper on “The Power of Undisturbed Birth” at a conference in Nazareth on the theme of pain in labour, hosted by the Israeli Childbirth Education Association.

There was also a two day workshop for educators, doulas and midwives on “Active Birth”., also in Nazareth. I have learned much about women and birth in Israel (again!) and have enjoyed my interaction with educators and midwives from Jewish, Muslim and Arabic backgrounds.

One interesting technique that was discussed by the midwives was the use of the “ATAD”, a balloon device that is inserted into a woman’s cervix to initiate labour. The balloon is inflated to open the cervix to a certain point (not sure how far - this was not indicated) and then she is left to wait for the labour to start on its own. The device has a “tail” that is attached to her leg. If the technique is effective, the device will fall out when the cervix is larger than the balloon - this may take a number of hours. It is apparently painful for the woman initially, but avoids the use of prostaglanden gel, which is considered to be more risky. I was told that women tolerate this technique (named after the man who invented it), and that it is in common use.

I also learned that dates are considered to have oxytocic effects, and that women in early labour often feast on dates to stimulate their contractions. Now this sounds like a much more pleasant way to get labour going! Posted by andrea at June 18, 2005 02:00 AM