There Is No Place Like Home: Why Women Are Choosing Home Birth in the Era of “Homelike” Hospitals

Abstract

Opponents of home birth have claimed that hospitals can become more “homelike” and, in doing so, eliminate any justification for women choosing to give birth at home. We argue that this reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of hospitals as institutions with rules, cultures, and goals, and of the nature and virtues of a home. While hospitals should seek ways to improve the patient experience, they can never be transformed into home environments, and thus the desire of some women to give birth at home will remain.