Psychedelic Medicine & Childbirth: A Midwife Shares Wisdom on Patient Centered Care

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Host Molly welcomes midwife and activist Betsy Merbitz to discuss the importance of patient-centered care in childbirth and in psychedelic therapies. Our conversation delves into the distinctions between holistic and medical models, focusing on the role of the individual as the primary healer. Betsy describes her work as a Certified Professional Midwife, the importance of holding space, and the historical context of the medicalization of birth. We explore the role of profit-seeking in the creation of our current healthcare systems while bemoaning the lack of accountability built into those systems.

We note that both psychedelics and childbirth have long histories of traditional and community-based care providers, and we discuss the dangers of excluding them in favor of for-profit models. The episode concludes with insights on how to center patient voices in the emerging field of psychedelic medicine, drawing parallels to the birth community.

In this episode we reference Dr. Neel Shah. Here are two articles about his work. These articles unfortunately do not use gender inclusive language.
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/hospital-management-practices-cesareans/
https://www.consumerreports.org/c-section/biggest-c-section-risk-may-be-your-hospital

We also reference Ayize Jama-Everett, one of the creators of the documentary A Table of Our Own. The interview I reference is from an episode of the Psychedelics Today podcast, which can be found here.

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1. Introduction to Patient-Centered Care and Psychedelic Medicine (00:00:00)

2. The Holistic Model vs. Medical Model in Psychedelic Therapy (00:00:15)

3. Welcoming Midwife Betsy Merbitz to the Podcast (00:01:34)

4. Exploring Midwifery and Client-Centered Care (00:01:46)

5. The Role and Training of Midwives (00:03:29)

6. Distinguishing Between Doulas and Midwives (00:06:02)

7. Accessing Care and Information about Birth and Psychedelics (00:08:21)

8. Philosophy of Care and the Importance of Consent (00:12:27)

9. Addressing Birth Trauma and the Power of Holding Space (00:16:39)

10. The Dangers of Medicalization in Birth and Psychedelic Therapy (00:26:15)

11. Exploring the Impact of Hospital Policies on C-Sections (00:27:55)

12. Personal Stories and the Realities of Healthcare Efficiency (00:30:46)

13. The Historical Shift from Home Births to Hospital Births (00:32:44)

14. The Influence of Profit on Healthcare and Birth Practices (00:35:16)

15. Patient Voices within Psychedelic Culture (00:39:07)

16. Accountability and Patient-Centered Care in Healthcare (00:43:09)

17. Community Care and Traditional Healers in Birth and Psychedelics (00:55:09)

18. The Economics Conundrum of Commercial Healthcare (00:58:15)

19. Concluding Thoughts on Healthcare, Accountability, and Patient Advocacy (00:59:00)