Special delivery: Home birth for first-time mum

Gill McPhail says home birth is a good option for first-time mums because of the continuity of care they receive from community midwives

Gill McPhail, from Rush, Co Dublin, with her six-month-old daughter Ellie who as born at home.

WHEN Gill McPhail was pregnant with her first child, she was certain of one thing — she wanted to feel in control when giving birth.

For Gill, a social care worker in an intellectual disability service and a yoga teacher, that meant having her baby at home. There, in her ideal scenario, she could have a water birth, with the help of a midwife who she knew and trusted and who would be there for her during her post-natal care.