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Pieter E. Treffers, MD, PhD; Martine Eskes, MD, PhD; Gunilla Kleiverda, MD, PhD; Dik van Alten, MD, PhD

JAMA. 1990;264(17):2203-2208.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

The Dutch system of obstetric care is attracting increasing attention from various parts of the world because of the large number of home births and the relatively low rate of medical intervention. The opinion prevalent among professionals and the general public is that pregnancy and labor are fundamentally normal events that only require medical intervention if there is a valid reason. Until recently, the small scale of the independent practices of midwives, general practitioners, and obstetricians providing medical and obstetric care in the country hampered the collection of reliable scientific information. The development of a national obstetric database is in an advanced stage, but up to now only limited statistical data are provided by the Central Bureau of Statistics and the Maternity Home Help Organization. New information recently became available from several research projects, providing more insight into the effectiveness of the system.

GENERAL INFORMATION

After 1945 the percentage of . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

Author Affiliations
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Footnotes
Edited by Annette Flanagin, RN, MA, Assistant to the Editor.

Reprint requests to Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Academic Medical Center, Meibergdreef 9, 1105 AZ, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (Dr Treffers).

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