Road Blocks!

Hello Everyone!
I'm sorry it has been so long since I've updated this blog - I've been settling in to my new home in Binghamton for nursing school. A couple of interesting meetings happened before I left town, though. In mid-April I sat down with Sadiya and Sahra, two Somali women who are active in the refugee community; especially with refugee health issues. Sahra and Sadiya were very open and very positive and excited about having a community center that could possibly empower Somali women! They shared a little bit about their own birth experiences and preferences. We will work on running a focus group in late August to bring some of the more pertinent issues and needs for this community up. 


The home birth focus group planned for the week after that did not happen; we had about 5 or 6 women who wanted to make it but most had scheduling difficulties. Again, we are looking to try again in late August so we can plan this better and more women will be able to come. So Lois VanTol and I sat down that day and talked about some of the difficulties we have been facing in planning this effort. So far, the main issues are:


Providers
Though there are many providers in the area who say they support the idea and would consider delivering at the birth center if it were established in the future, it is understandably difficult to predict how many providers we would have for sure. It would be difficult for any given provider to securely say that they would work someplace that is not established, but it is similarly difficult to plan something without knowing how much support we could have, or how many staff members/deliveries per year. Many *new* midwives would probably excited about working at a freestanding, newly established birth center, but establishments like this benefit from a mix of very experienced providers and new energy. Of course, any experienced midwives are already working as midwives and cannot commit to a non-existent place! What a dilemma. 


Nonprofit Status
As mentioned in a previous post, there are multiple ways to go about establishing the birth center. One option is to open it as a not-for-profit organization, which was ideal. This would require a board of directors, non-profit application, and certificate of need (based on the community needs assessment - hence the focus groups). There are many financial benefits to opening this place as a not-for-profit organization. Another option is to open it as a private business with one owner, which isn't ideal but might be quicker - one could take out private business loans to start the place, rent property, etc, and then apply for NP status later on. This is something we may have to consider - right now, all the options are open and we just have to look at which is most feasible. 


So right now we are examining these different options, hoping for continued enthusiasm and support, including some events in August of this year. I will be attending the AABC (American Association of Birth Centers) workshop on "How to Open a Birth Center" in Reading, Pennsylvania (http://www.birthcenters.org/conferences/page.php?id=9) in early June and will definitely post everything I learn after this conference! If you are in the Rochester area and have any ideas on how to move this process along, please contact me (RochesterBirthCenter@gmail.com) and I will put you in touch with Lois VanTol. Thanks, friends!