I have been visiting your site for almost a year and finally have the courage to post my story. I gave birth to my son last April at home with a lay midwife. Two days later I started with a fever and severe pain. We went to the local ER and was treated horribly for my choice to birth at home. I was never seen by a OB and was sent home with pain killers and a number to call in the AM. The next morning I called and was told they could not help me because they were not my Dr. My midwife and I called a few more Dr's and we were told the same thing. I was so sick and didn't know what to do. my midwife told me to go home and get some "rest and Love"

That night I went to another ER and was admitted for two days. They sent me home but the fever came back the next day. I went back to the ER and they sent me to another hospital an hour away. I stayed for 12 days and almost died. I was diagnosed with a Strep A infection. They had to take my uterus to save my life. I fought and fought and was lucky to make it out.

I searched the internet many times until I found your site. I am so sorry about Jessica. I think of your story often. I would like to help you raise awareness in the US. Is there anything I can do to help you? Please send me a email. I feel that my mission is to help people understand this is still happing to women today. The Dr's and Midwives can take simple steps to prevent it.

Light and Love to you and your family

What used to happen in Semmelweis' era was that the bacteria (and those picked up in the mortuary) were actively transferred from woman to woman, causing an epidemic. The same would be true now, but for our knowledge of infection and anti-sepsis.

What Jessica's Trust is trying to combat is the prevailing natural threat - which may never be extinguished but can be managed before it is life threatening.

It is important to understand that childbed fever can be acquired anywhere - at home or in hospital. Up to 30% of us are estimated to be carriers of GAS.

This information should be on every midwifery course and reinforced through professional development etc. I've just been asked to speak to a midwifery course so will be able to help with this!

I did things backwards, I think, in that I read the stories etc. here first and then looked at your leaflet, where it explains about the condition not being the result of HACs etc. This does raise questions in my mind, though. If it's not transmitted through poor hydiene why did so many women die before Semmelweis and anti-sepsis came along? However, the principles of good hygiene, being informed, monitoring newly-delivered women carefully and acting quickly are vital whatever the source of the infection, so that's what I will do. Also, I started my training in 2000 and I don't remember being taught anything about this. I wonder if it features on the syllabus now? Best wishes to you, Anne

Thank you too to everyone who has visited the site after listing to the Jeremy Vine programme, do come back!

I just heard you on Jeremy Vine on R2 and firstly I would like to say how very sorry I was to hear the story and, indeed, it should not be happening at all in the UK in this day and age. One of the problems is that the maternity services just can't cope and women are sent home very early from hospital to scant community midwifery care, so no-one really detects these things in the early stages any more. Hospitals are getting dirtier and this must be invovled, I imagine. I am a midwife in independent practice and am an advocate of home birth, where women are unlikley to pick up infections. I will now give my clients (wherever they chooses to birth their babies) a leaftlet about this infection. I will do what I can to extend awareness of it and will be more careful about taking their pulse, temp and BP when they have birthed in hospital. So you have changed this midwife's practice at any rate.

I do so hope you enjoy your children. It wasn't the pregnancy or birth that killed Emily's mother but (probable) negligence on the part of the hospital. Any guilt should be felt by those responsible. My best wishes to you all.

Anne

Your story sounds outrageous and I am particularly incensed by the part about the hospital refusing to tell you what the infection was, although it is possible they just didn't know. You have a right to have a copy of your medical notes, so you can contact the Head of Midwifery at the hospital concerned and request this. There will be a charge involved. They do not have the right to with hold information from you. It's your body, not theirs. Best wishes, Anne Stafford (Midwife)