Labour pains: Surge in homebirths as women seek alternative options

Public homebirth service saw 53% increase in 2021 compared to pre-pandemic numbers

Lucianne Hughes with daughter Poppy. While she had both home and hospital birth experiences she says the best option is 'whatever is right for you'.

Of the 58,443 babies born in Ireland in 2021, almost 650 of those were homebirths, across both public and private services. 

While 650 out of 58,443 might not seem like many, it represented a 53% increase for the public homebirth service, compared with 2019.