Hospital key to baby delivery method

The hospital a first-time mum chooses for the delivery of her child is likely to have a huge bearing on whether the infant is born naturally or by caesarean section, according to new birth statistics.

The figures, released by the Health Service Executive (HSE), show the C-section rate for first time mothers varied hugely across the country in 2012, from a low of almost 23% in Sligo General to nearly double that at St Lukes Hospital in Kilkenny, where the rate was over 40%. Nationally, the caesarean section rate stands at 26%.

According to the Association for Improvements in the Maternity Services (AIMS), who obtained the figures under FoI legislation, the data shows a stark contrast in the level of interventions that a first-time mother experiences compared to women who have given birth previously.