Utah Midwife

This is an FYI to let everyone know that I am officially putting
adoption on hold for the moment. And I don’t think I am going to
Zambia for babies. Were I think I am going to end up going is Congo.
My Dad has started a new non-profit called TIFIE (Teaching Individuals
and Families Through Enterprise). The website is www, tifie.com. I am
actually very excited about the possibilities with Congo, and more
then just for reasons of adoption. I am hoping that in the next year
or two we set up a clinic, a birth center, a baby house, and adoption
agency so that we can get babies placed faster. The connections my dad
is making I believe will help us be able to refine their rules
process, and make adoption from Congo more attainable. I realize I
would probably spend less time and energy just going through an agency
and could probably have a baby in less time then it will take me to do
this. I am still hoping to travel to Zambia to learn more about what
MWB is doing and how they are operating.

One of my goals to is make HIV drugs more available to pregnant women
so that 1. They have a greater chance of living to raise there own
babies, and 2. They ones that choose to abandon their own babies will
have a smaller chance of passed the virus to their babies. AIDS is a
HUGE problem in Congo, as it is in all of Africa. Also I would like to
be able to provide birth control and AIDS prevention education.

One of the main problems with Congo is that the unemployment rate is
about 80%, and those that are employed make pitiful wages ( I believe
$8 per month is average). So prostitution is a main source of income
for many women. Also, there is not adequate water pump and
purification systems in Congo. One of the Orphanages that my dad
visited they children had to walk 9 miles round trip just to get water
for the day. You can imagine that with have kind of work, they don’t
have much time for education, or anything else. There are also no
mattresses that the children sleep on. If they have bed wetters, they
just have to throw them out in a few months. Not to mention the huge
problem with Lice and Scabies. On of the first projects that is going
to happen with TIFIE is to move this orphanage to a better location,
dig a well for clean water, and provide mattresses that are both
treated and waterproof.

This is a unique business model as it is a nonprofit that will
generate funds off it’s own interest, and self-propetuate. Another
example of a project that is already happening is that existing
companies will partner with Tiffie and tifie will help them to grow
and teach business modeling. One man that is already running a water
purification company in Congo, and has 12 employees will be given a
$20000 grant. With this grant he will be able to move to an adequate
facility, hire 30 more people, and the wages will be close to $60 per
month (which is higher then most government workers make at $25 per
month). This will help raise the employment opportunity and quality of
life in Congo.

Anyway, There is my update. I will let you know when there is more
news. If any of you want to get involved in this work LMK I am sure
there is a lot that can be done and the possibilities are endless. I
hope to be able to set up midwifery training programs in Congo, among
other things.

Peace,

Tara

Dear Family and Friends and everyone else:

As some of you know a very BAD bill is being presented in the Senate that would effectively eliminate 96% of all homebirths in Utah. Senator Dayton and the Utah Medical Association have presented a bill ( and very poorly written I might add) in the name of defining normal birth. This bill goes beyond the definition of normal birth, and is clearly a restraint of trade. Many of the conditions listed on this bill are ALREADY addressed in our rules which were approved by DOPL, and was the longest rules hearing ever in the State of Utah.

This is an attempt to gut our bill that was passed two years ago, and tie our hands. I might add that two recent reports by the Utah Department of Health and DOPL shows that midwives are very safe, and our numbers are better in many areas then many hospital providers.

This is not about weather or not you agree with homebirth, or would ever have one yourself. This is about a woman’s right to choose where, when, and with whom she has her baby.  It is a fundamental right, and preventing women from doing so is wrong. This is an attempt for the Utah Medical Association to Regulate a practice that is not even under there jurisdiction.

This bill will be heard in the Senate Standing Committee on Thursday Morning at 8am. Miss Dayton is surpassing the Health and Human Services committee and sending it to the Natural Resources and Agriculture committee instead (because she is on that committee). This is clearly a Health and Human Services issue! If any of you wish to join us please email me and I will give you the details.

Here are links to the reports that I was referring to. To email your Senator go to le.utah.gov and you should be able to find you Representative and Senator. If anyone has trouble finding out who there legislators are email me your address and I can help you. This is a very important issue for me and my family and all the families that I serve. I am changing my Prenatal Schedule for the month of February, and will be doing evening visits, as I plan on being up at the Hill every Day that I can. If you want to join us feel free. We are the group with the M&Ms and pink stickers.

DOPL Outcome report

http://www.dopl.utah.gov/licensing/de_midwife_outcomes.pdf

BMJ Article
http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/330/7505/1416

Salt Lake Trib Article

http://www.sltrib.com/ci_5109777

Direct Link to Health Department Report
http://health.utah.gov/opha/publications/hsu/06Dec_HomeBirth.pdf

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