Birthkeeper hired by woman who died after freebirth tells inquest she was ‘not there to make a birth safer’

“I’m not clinically trained. It’s not my role to assess blood loss.”

Lal said she had undertaken a course offered online by the Free Birth Society. The society is multimillion-dollar online business that promotes the idea of women giving birth with no medical assistance. It has been criticised by medical professionals who say the information shared about excessive bleeding, blue babies and placenta care are dangerous.

Lal said at one point Warnecke had asked her if her blood loss was normal and she had responded: “It’s more than I would consider to be normal.” Lal told the court: “If it was me, I would have been concerned.”

But she said she would not make a decision for a mother about whether and when to call an ambulance, and that respecting autonomy was central to the support she provided.

With hindsight, she said, she might have pushed harder for Warnecke’s agreement to call an ambulance but still would not have made the final decision.

On Monday the inquest heard that it is rare for women to die from a postpartum haemorrhage when giving birth in hospital or with medical professionals present, as it is treatable with fast access to care.

Asked if she believed with hindsight that Warnecke would have benefited from faster access to medical professionals, Lal said: “I can’t say what would have happened.” But she agreed that suffering a postpartum haemorrhage is more dangerous at home than in hospital.

Lal stopped working as a birthkeeper immediately after Warnecke’s death and told the court she made that decision because she believed she would bring trauma from the death to any future births she attended.

The health complaints commissioner then suspended Lal from providing or advertising health services while it investigated concerns about her services. That investigation is ongoing.

The court heard that while Warnecke was in surgery, Lal returned to the home, cleaned up and took the bloodied carpet to her own bin to dispose of it, because it would not fit in Warnecke’s. She refused to give a statement to police.

Asked if her actions could be viewed as her worrying about the consequences to herself after Warnecke’s death, Lal said: “I think that’s really unfair.” She said her concern was ensuring Warnecke’s husband wasn’t confronted by the scene on his return.

She said she had sought legal advice after Warnecke’s death because of her experience following a death that occurred during a previous freebirth, when she felt she was blamed by the media.

“I wasn’t legally required to [make a statement to police] so I opted to not to do that,” she said. “I am so sad and distressed to this day over Stacey’s death.”

The inquest continues.