Mothers and Babies report reveals home births on the rise in NSW - but not by choice - as boys still outnumber girls being born

GIVING birth at home ‘accidentally’ has risen in the past five years, home births by choice have dropped and boys still outnumber girls being born, according to the latest report into mothers and babies.

Five week old sleeping boy and girl fraternal twin newborn babies. They are wearing crocheted pink and blue striped hats.

• More babies born in NSW than five years ago

• Majority of mothers giving birth are aged between 30-34

• More women elected to have caesareans

• More boys being born than girls

• NSW Mothers and Babies 2013 report reveals latest birth data

IF THERE was ever a time not to lose the car keys, it was the day Tracey Smart went into labour.

Yelling at her husband Merrick from where she stood on the front porch of her Frenchs Forest home in Sydney’s north, the primary school teacher knew she was not going to make it to hospital.

“I was literally crossing my legs trying to hold on, but my husband could not find the keys,” Mrs Smart said.

“I was going mental, he was going mental. We ended up calling Triple-0.”

A little over one hour from the first contraction, baby Isabel entered the world at 8.15am on the floor of the Smart’s TV room.

The keys were later found in her mother’s handbag where it was believed her older daughter Sophie, 2, may have put them.

Over in Summer Hill, magazine editor Jessica Parry had a similar experience after delivering her second child, Elroy, on the couch.

“I rang the hospital after my first contractions started at 3.30am, and they told me not to come in until they were five minutes apart,” she said.

Jessica Parry gave birth to their on the couch at home with the help of her husband Darren Ong.

Within two hours, Ms Parry had given birth with her contractions only making it to 10 minutes apart.

The ambulance arrived just in time to assist her husband Darren with the delivery.

But in each case, the mums both said they were glad they had not made it to the car where they may have given birth instead.

The latest NSW Mothers and Babies report, to be released today, reveals “born before arrival” births have risen in recent years to 543.

NSW Kids and Families Senior Clinical Advisor (Obstetrics), Associate Professor Michael Nicholl said the general rule as to when to leave for the hospital was when contractions were strong and regular for an hour or two.

However, the overriding advice to mothers as to when to leave for the hospital was to trust their instincts while being guided by what happened before if it was a second baby or third baby.

“In the vast majority of cases, there is nothing preventable that could have been done,” he said.

“Our message to women is to listen to their bodies.

“Sometimes a hospital will encourage you to stay at home or a partner, but if you do not feel safe or if you are concerned about the baby’s movements, go to the hospital.”

In cases where it was too late to leave, women were advised to avoid tiled bathrooms or kitchens where the newborn could be exposed to the cold, Prof Nicholl said.

While accidental births have risen, home birthing by choice appears to have fallen out of favour, dropping from 231 to 217.

More babies were born in NSW in 2013, compared to 2009.

There were 532 more babies born in 2013 than five years ago, with 96,971 with one in five born in western and south-western Sydney.

Boys outnumbered girls, accounting for 51.6 per of babies.

The report showed a rise in the number of mothers electing to have a Caesarean, especially among those with private insurance.

The total number of caesareans in public and private hospitals rose to 31.5 per cent over the five years, while assisted births also increased slightly.

The most common age to give birth was between 30-34 years with 15 babies born to females under the age of 15 and 240 to women aged over 45 years.

Around one in 10 mothers — or 9285 — admitted smoking during pregnancy although overall rates declined slightly

Cases of gestational diabetes rose from 5.4 per cent to 7 per cent with 6710 mothers treated.

A rise in prolonged pregnancies of 41 weeks led to an increase in mothers requiring an induced labour.

Infant formula appears on the way out with almost 90 per cent of mothers breastfeeding either fulltime or in conjunction with bottle feeding.

More boys than girls are being born in NSW, which is the recurring trend.

FIVE-YEAR MOTHERS AND BABIES SNAPSHOT

Comparing 2009 and 2013

■ 543 More babies were born across NSW in 2013 than 5 years ago with 96,971 births

■ The majority of mothers having babies were aged between 30-34 years

■ More women elected to have caesareans, with 17,818 performed in 2013 compared with 16,649 in 2009

■ The rate of normal vaginal births fell from 58.2 per cent in 2009 to 56.8 per cent in 2013

■ As in 2009 more boys were born than girls in 2013 with 51.6 per cent being male compared with 48.4 per cent female

■ 543 babies were born before their mothers could make it to hospital

■ The number of mothers breastfeeding their babies exclusively fell slightly from 80.5 per cent in 2009 to 79.8 per cent in 2013

■ There were 15 babies born to mothers aged 15 years or under. In 2009 there were 23

■ There was a decline in mothers aged 15-19 years having babies with 2832 births in 2013 compared to 3271 in 2009

■ There was a 26 per cent increase in mothers aged over 45+ years giving birth in 2013 compared to 2009

Source: NSW Mothers and Babies Report 2013