Between 37 and 42 weeks of pregnancy you can give birth under our care. In every other case we refer you to hospital, where an obstetrician or a hospital midwife attends the birth.
If the pregnancy is progressing normally, you choose where to give birth yourself. You can choose between a home birth and an outpatient birth in hospital. A home birth is covered in full by your health insurer. For an outpatient birth without a medical reason you pay a personal contribution of a few hundred euros, unless your supplementary insurance covers it.
The best place to give birth is usually the place where you feel safe, because that is where you can relax best — and the more you can relax, the better the birth tends to go. Surroundings that do not feel safe can slow labour down. Giving birth at home can be pleasant because you are in your own familiar surroundings and can simply carry on doing your own thing. The same goes for your partner. And afterwards you get straight back into your own bed, and you can have visitors at home. Even so, during labour it can sometimes be medically necessary to go to hospital after all.
Some people prefer to give birth in hospital because everything is at hand there and they would not have to be transferred if complications arise. Do bear in mind that we are well equipped too, and that you cannot go into hospital at the first contraction. People also often assume an obstetrician or a paediatrician is present around the clock. That is not the case. But of course the choice of where to give birth is yours, and that choice is always respected.
If you find the choice difficult, we are happy to talk it through with you. What matters to us is that you can look back on the birth with satisfaction.
If you have chosen to give birth at home, you can always change your mind — during labour as well — and decide to go to hospital after all. The same applies the other way round. A choice once made need not be final. It is wise to be prepared for both.
If you have particular wishes for the birth, you can write them down in a birth plan. There you can set out what matters to you and what you expect. We, and the obstetrician or hospital midwife too, will do our best to take your wishes into account.
Body Mass Index (BMI)
The BMI expresses the ratio between your height and your weight. We work it out at the first appointment.
In this region, with a BMI between 35 and 40 you give birth in hospital, which can be under our care. With a BMI of 40 or higher you also give birth in hospital, but then under the care of an obstetrician or a hospital midwife.