Buy Your T-shirts Online!

Remember our T-shirts?

We’re still selling them here in Louisville, but we’re very excited to finally offer our shirts for sale online! We have limited quantities available for purchase on our website.

Get your very own ICAN T-shirt and spread awareness without saying a word!

T-shirt Front

T-shirt Front

Contact us with questions!  We know you’ll love them!

Birth in the Bluegrass 2012

Birth Care Network has announced Birth in the Bluegrass 2012, and opened their sponsorship & exhibitor registration.  ICAN of Louisville will be there, and we hope you save the date and stop by and see our booth.

Check out www.birthinthebluegrass.com for more information!

A new year and a new vision for ICAN of Louisville

Here at ICAN of Louisville we’re continually trying to improve how we serve the families of the Louisville area. One area that we are working hard to improve is our presence in the community. ICAN can only help families if they know about us. How can we improve our community involvement? What’s your idea for getting families to our meetings? Where can we be that we aren’t? What are you doing to help spread ICAN’s mission? What is your vision for ICAN of Louisville?

2012 Meeting Schedule

We debuted our 2012 Meeting Schedule tonight at our December meeting.  We look forward to seeing you in the new year!

Download the meeting schedule flier as a pdf here and please share with others!

February 6 @ 7pm – Dancing for Birth Demo Class,with Jessica Strickland, Birth & Postpartum Doula and
Dancing for Birth Instructor

April 28 – ICAN of Louisville’s 5th Birthday Party.
We’ll be hosting a family-friendly community birthday party.  Details to come!
May 21 @ 7pm – *Support Meeting:  Creating Safe  Boxes with Nina Berry, birth doula & ICAN of Louisville
Outreach Coordinator
June 4 @ 7pm – Enjoying the Journey, Avoiding the Obstacles, with Angela Garvin, Certified Lamaze Educator & birth doula, and ICAN professional subscriber

August 6 @ 7pm – Tips for a Healthy Pregnancy with Aundria Radmacher, homebirth midwife and ICAN professional subscriber
September 17 @ 7pm – *Support Meeting:  Sharing Your Birth Story
October 1 @ 7pm – Homebirth:  A Family Friendly Option, with Michelle Sanders, CPM and ICAN professional subscriber

December 3 @ 7pm – Doula! Film Showing & Meet the ICAN Professionals night

2012 Meeting Schedule…. a teaser

using wordle

We look forward to seeing you at our December 5th meeting!

2010 Cesarean Section Data

For Immediate Release
CESAREAN RATE DROPS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 16 YEARS;
1 IN 3 PREGNANT WOMEN STILL FACE SURGICAL DELIVERY

Release Highlights:
• U.S. Cesarean rate drops .1% for the first time in 16 years.
• American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology released a report July 21, 2010 with new guidelines to encourage physicians to give mothers more VBAC options, thus decreasing the overall cesarean rate.

Louisville, KY, November 17, 2011 – The National Center for Health Statistics has reported that the national cesarean rate has decreased .1% to 32.8 percent. In the commonwealth of the Kentucky, the 2010′s rate dropped slightly to 34.5%, placing Kentucky with the seventh highest surgical birth rate in the nation (tied with Connecticut).

“The cesarean birth rate is basically unchanged from last year, which is good news. We look forward to working to bring that number down to a reasonable range,” said Robin Elise Weiss, pregnancy expert. “The preliminary data doesn’t give us enough detail to explain what has halted this rise that we’ve seen for over a decade, but my belief is that it is a combination of efforts, particularly on the part of the consumer.”

The International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN) has consistently presented research that shows cesarean surgery should be used more judiciously and that VBAC should be used more routinely. The World Health Organization recommends a cesarean
birth rate of 10-15% for best outcomes for moms and babies.

“It’s encouraging to see the cesarean rate decrease on both the national and local level.  But the fact remains that too many babies are being surgically delivered” said Erin Vest, leader of the Louisville chapter of the International Cesarean Awareness Network
(ICAN). “The cesarean rate needs to drop drastically and the VBAC rate needs to climb.”

“This is not about the idealized ‘birth experience’. Mothers who have had cesarean sections have to recover from surgery while learning to bond with and take care of their babies, “ says Ashley Benz, a Louisville-based International Board Certified Lactation
Consultant. “Cesarean birth is a risk factor for having breastfeeding difficulty and increases your risk for postpartum depression at what is one of the happiest times in your life.”

ICAN’s collection of research highlights from 2008 demonstrates the inherent risks of cesarean including higher risks of hemorrhage, hysterectomy and other complications, a higher chance of suffering from potentially fatal placental problems in subsequent pregnancies, and babies having a higher chance of developing asthma later in childhood. In July of 2010, the American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology released new guidelines to encourage physicians to give mothers more VBAC options, which would decrease the overall cesarean rate.

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Women who are seeking information about how to avoid a cesarean, have a VBAC, or are recovering from a cesarean can visit www.ican-online.org and www.icanoflouisville.com for more information. In addition to more than 130 chapters nationally and abroad, the group hosts active on-line forums and a discussion group that serve as a resource for mothers.

About Cesareans: ICAN recognizes that when a cesarean is medically necessary, it can be a lifesaving technique for both mother and baby, and worth the risks involved. Potential risks to babies include: low birth weight, prematurity, respiratory problems, and lacerations. Potential risks to women include: hemorrhage, infection, hysterectomy, surgical mistakes, re-hospitalization, dangerous placental abnormalities in future pregnancies, unexplained stillbirth in future pregnancies and increased percentage of maternal death. http://ican-online.org/pregnancy/home

Mission statement: ICAN is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve maternal-child health by preventing unnecessary cesareans through education, providing support for cesarean recovery and promoting vaginal birth after cesarean.
For women who have experienced a cesarean, who are working towards a VBAC, or simply want to know how to prevent a first cesarean, ICAN of Louisville is available to provide resources and support. For more information on how to get involved, contact
Erin Vest or Ashley Benz at info@icanoflouisville.com or visit www.icanoflouisville.com.

                                                                                                                                                    Contact: ICAN of Louisville
                                                                                                                                             Robin Elise Weiss, Media Spokesperson
                                                                                                                                              502-314-2401
                                                                                                                                              Robin@robineliseweiss.com

No November Support Meeting

Friends of ICAN,

We will not be having a support meeting in November.  Please help spread the word, so no one shows up alone.

 

Thanks!

Come see us at Doulapalooza 2011!

Doulapalooza 2011 on Saturday, October 15 · 10:00am – 2:00pm

South Lawn of the Douglass Loop Farmers Market

2005 Douglass Blvd at Bardstown Road in the Highlands

 

Join the family fun at this year’s gathering of birth professionals and their community of clients, friends and advocates as Doulapalooza rocks into its seventh year of promoting positive, informed childbirth.

It is a free event and open to the public. There is something for everyone!

The festival and fundraising atmosphere of Doulapalooza welcomes the finest local musicians, educational exhibits, craft vendors, children’s ac…tivities, food and prizes. This year it is held in conjunction with the Douglass Boulevard Farmers Market, where freshly prepared breakfast, lunch and desserts as well as locally grown produce and gift items are available just yards away.

Acoustic performances will be from 10:00 am. – 1:30 pm and include Danny Flanigan, Leigh Ann Yost, Molly McCormack and Bettie Keeling a.ka. String Chickens, Heidi Howe, Kri & Hettie, andThe Howards.

Birth Care Network is excited to be joined by the International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN), WomanCare @ Clark Memorial, Louisville Family Chiropractic, Louisville and Southern Indiana La Leche League, Babyology, Mama’s Hip, Oweltree Yoga, NZA Photography, Birth Louisville, Bird & Bee Boutique, SPROUTS and more!

For more information contact Cindy Lamb at CoolDoula@aol.com or call the Birth Care Network info and referral line at 499-4418.

 

 

Kentucky Hospitals in 2010

When choosing a place to give birth, do you ask the hospital’s cesarean rate?  VBAC rate?

This site is a great resource to have bookmarked and a good place to start when seeking information on our local hospitals.

 

 

 

The Future of our chapter’s Support Meetings

Members & Friends of ICAN of Louisville,

We are in need of a volunteer to take over our bi-monthly Support Meetings in 2012.

Support meetings are held on odd-numbered months (January, March, etc.,) , on the 1st Monday of the month, from 7-9pm.  All that is required of this volunteer position is a listening ear and a supportive attitude.

If you are interested in helping our chapter with this need, please contact Erin at erin [at] icanoflouisville [dot] com for more information.

Thank you!!