Design and methodology in a community, practice-based research network: a study of nurse-midwifery home-birth practice.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the feasibility, probable success, and inherent problems of conducting a multi-site, multi-year cohort study of planned home birth in the USA.


METHODS
A prospective cohort study.


METHODS
14 states across the USA, representing a variety of regions and settings.


METHODS
29 home-birth midwifery practices, representing 44 individual midwives in both large and small, solo and group practices.


METHODS
Birth outcomes for all women initially enrolled in these home-birth practices.


CONCLUSIONS
Multi-site studies of evaluating outcomes in small community-based practices are possible if several requirements are met.


CONCLUSIONS
Understudied birth alternatives can be formally researched within a co-operative network of participating practitioners.
Murphy
P A
PA
Columbia University Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, New York, NY 10032, USA.
D003625:Data Collection; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006700:Home Childbirth / Q000451:nursing* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008880:Midwifery / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009721:Nurse Midwives / Q000458:organization & administration*; D015399:Nursing Research / Q000458:organization & administration*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012107:Research Design / Q000592:standards*; D014481:United States