My best friend is having a baby. She lives right around the corner from a hospital–how convenient! Except that she really doesn’t want to have her baby in that particular hospital, whose C-section rates are some of the highest in the city. She’s interested in natural childbirth options. She wants to have her baby in a birthing center, and our city has only two of those. Two. We have 8 million people–quite a few of those making more people–and two options for birthing centers.

One of those options is in a whole other borough where I happen to live, but my Manhattanite friend blanches at the thought of having to make her way to while, oh, IN LABOR. Sometimes I’m a little sensitive about her reluctance to schlep out here, but in this case, I guess I get her point.

So that leaves one. With a wait list. I won’t leave you in suspense–she was accepted, and is looking forward to her experience there (if in an understandably holy-#%*&-this-is-really-happening way).

If the options out there are fewer than we wish, we’re happy that there are resources online connecting women with care providers, midwives and doulas who are striving to improve maternity care. Here’s a hometown favorite: www.choicesinchildbirth.org.