Breech Birth Online Course(s) & Continuing Education

Betty-Anne Daviss MA, RM has practised as a midwife for over 40 years on various continents, and as a researcher in the social sciences and clinical epidemiology, for over 25 years. An Adjunct Professor in Ottawa, Canada, she has taught since the 1980s about the politics of gender and health. She has worked towards midwifery legislation in Canada and the U.S. and acted as the project coordinator for the Safe Motherhood Initiative of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO). Engaged with the SOGC when it first began to reintroduce vaginal breech birth to Canada, she has helped to organize several breech conferences and was the co-principal investigator and principle writer for the Frankfurt study comparing vaginal breeches born with the mothers upright vs on their backs (2017). She was a co-editor of Birth Models That Work (2009) and is principal editor of Speaking Truth to Power: Childbirth Models on the Human Rights Frontier (forthcoming 2019).

David Hayes is an OBGYN with an academic background and a passion for science and its proper application to clinical medicine. He has worked for Médecins Sans Frontières and trained in critical care obstetrics.

Dr. Hayes pursued training in vaginal breech birth during both medical school and his residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology, at a time when instruction in vaginal breech birth was no longer routinely included in the training of obstetricians in the United States. He has performed an estimated 140 vaginal breech births using traditional obstetric maneuvers in dorsal lithotomy positions. In 2016 he hosted a training session on physiologic vaginal breech birth taught by Dr. Shawn Walker, PhD. Since that time he has been fortunate to many vaginal breech births, including breech-breech twins and primiparous mothers, with a 100% successful vaginal breech birth rate and no significant complications or instrument interventions.

In 2018, Dr. Hayes arranged to host a workshop presented by breech researcher Dr. Rixa Freeze, PhD and was asked to teach the “hands-on” portion of the workshop. As of August 2019 and in conjunction with Dr. Freeze and her organization Breech Without Borders, he has committed full time to training and reestablishment of physiologic vaginal breech birth.

Dr. Rixa Freeze has a PhD in American Studies from the University of Iowa. Her doctoral studies focused on the history of healthcare and medicine with specialization in pregnancy, childbirth, and maternity care. Her dissertation examined why women in North America choose unassisted home births. She worked as a visiting assistant professor for 9 years at Wabash college. Her current research interests include human rights in childbirth, autonomy and informed consent, and vaginal breech birth.

She has published two articles about home birth: “Staying Home to Give Birth: Why Women in the United States Choose Home Birth” (JMWH 2009) and “Attitudes Towards Home Birth in the USA” (Expert Review of Obstetrics & Gynecology 2010). She recently published the article “Breech birth at home: Outcomes of 60 breech and 109 cephalic planned home and birth center births” with BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth. In 2019 she published an article about outcomes of breech at home, birth centers, and hospitals (Midwifery Today) and a book chapter “Freebirth in the United States” in the 2020 book Birthing Outside the System: The Canary in the Coal Mine.

Dr. Freeze is the founder and president of Breech Without Borders, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to breech training, education, and advocacy. She also blogs at Stand and Deliver (rixarixab.blogspot.com).

Barbara Harper is an internationally recognized expert on waterbirth and gentle birth, a published author of books and journal articles, who founded the non-profit organization, Waterbirth International, in 1988, with one goal in mind – to ensure that waterbirth is an “available option” for all women. During the past five decades Barbara has worked as an obstetric, pediatric, and critical care nurse, midwife, midwifery instructor, childbirth educator, and Blissborn Hypnosis teacher/trainer. She teaches unique seminars within hospitals, nursing schools, midwifery and medical schools and community groups worldwide. Her bestselling book, ‘Gentle Birth Choices,’ has been translated into 9 languages, including Chinese. Her latest collaborative book project was published in May 2021, called Bringing Birth Home. She is also working on a new book project called Gentle Birth Wisdom. She lives in Boca Raton, Florida teaching Blissborn Classes and attending occasional births.

Charlotte Sanchez is a childbirth educator and midwife. Supporting women and their families in the natural home birth process consecutively now for 30 years. As an Atlanta midwife, she believes in a woman’s right to determine her own choice of care during pregnancy and birth. Charlotte received her training through an extensive internship before becoming a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM), a program developed by the North American Registry of Midwives. She gained vast experience co-directed a free standing family birthing center in the state of Michigan. As well as founding Pregnancy Beat a national pregnancy website featuring expert articles, videos, birth stories and a community for mothers. It was after attending home births throughout the United States and Canada in places such as Windsor, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, California and Georgia that she now resides in Atlanta. Recently after completing 10 years serving as Vice President of the Georgia Midwife Association Charlotte decided to move forward to pursue her passion with teaching. She specializes in water birth, vbac, twins and breech birth. She has trained highly motivated students who have became practicing Midwives. Personally Charlotte is a mother of four children whom three were born gently into the hands of midwives, with the last a home water birth 25 years ago.

Dr. Kotaska is an Obstetrician & Gynecologist in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, where he lives with his wife and two boys. He received his medical degree from U.B.C. in 1992 and worked as a GP-surgeon in northern British Columbia before returning to complete a residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology in 2006. He has academic appointments with the Universities of British Columbia, Manitoba, and Toronto. He is regularly active in midwifery and obstetrical education. Dr. Kotaska’s academic interests centre on preserving physiological birth while avoiding unnecessary obstetrical intervention; the overestimation of risk in obstetrics; and the ethics of informed consent and refusal. His latest research interests focus on safe vaginal breech birth, the effect of epidural analgesia on labour, spontaneous two-step delivery, and the shortcomings of guidelines. 

Gail Tully, is a certified professional midwife (CPM) who began her midwifery studies preparing for a breech baby's homebirth in 1983. Expecting to photograph, Gail found herself already receiving the baby as the midwife entered and declined to take over. Gail is the founder of www.SpinningBabies.com which is a top resource for pregnant women with breech positioned babies and world renown approach to physiological birthing. Retired from primary care, she enjoys being called out to an occasional breech birth. Gail Tully is the author of The Belly Mapping Workbook (2005), Resolving Shoulder Dystocia video (2011), Daily Essentials video, Spinning Babies Parent Class video (both 2014), Spinning Babies Quick Reference (2015), and Breech Birth; Quick Guide (2016).

Dr. Rixa Freeze has a PhD in American Studies from the University of Iowa. Her doctoral studies focused on the history of healthcare and medicine with specialization in pregnancy, childbirth, and maternity care. Her dissertation examined why women in North America choose unassisted home births. She worked as a visiting assistant professor for 9 years at Wabash college. Her current research interests include human rights in childbirth, autonomy and informed consent, and vaginal breech birth.

She has published two articles about home birth: “Staying Home to Give Birth: Why Women in the United States Choose Home Birth” (JMWH 2009) and “Attitudes Towards Home Birth in the USA” (Expert Review of Obstetrics & Gynecology 2010). She recently published the article “Breech birth at home: Outcomes of 60 breech and 109 cephalic planned home and birth center births” with BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth. In 2019 she published an article about outcomes of breech at home, birth centers, and hospitals (Midwifery Today) and a book chapter “Freebirth in the United States” in the 2020 book Birthing Outside the System: The Canary in the Coal Mine.

Dr. Freeze is the founder and president of Breech Without Borders, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to breech training, education, and advocacy. She also blogs at Stand and Deliver (rixarixab.blogspot.com).

Dr. Rixa Freeze has a PhD in American Studies from the University of Iowa. Her doctoral studies focused on the history of healthcare and medicine with specialization in pregnancy, childbirth, and maternity care. Her dissertation examined why women in North America choose unassisted home births. She worked as a visiting assistant professor for 9 years at Wabash college. Her current research interests include human rights in childbirth, autonomy and informed consent, and vaginal breech birth.

She has published two articles about home birth: “Staying Home to Give Birth: Why Women in the United States Choose Home Birth” (JMWH 2009) and “Attitudes Towards Home Birth in the USA” (Expert Review of Obstetrics & Gynecology 2010). She recently published the article “Breech birth at home: Outcomes of 60 breech and 109 cephalic planned home and birth center births” with BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth. In 2019 she published an article about outcomes of breech at home, birth centers, and hospitals (Midwifery Today) and a book chapter “Freebirth in the United States” in the 2020 book Birthing Outside the System: The Canary in the Coal Mine.

Dr. Freeze is the founder and president of Breech Without Borders, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to breech training, education, and advocacy. She also blogs at Stand and Deliver (rixarixab.blogspot.com).

Stuart J. Fischbein MD is a fellow of the American College of Obstetrics & Gynecology, published author (“Fearless Pregnancy, Wisdom & Reassurance from a Doctor, A Midwife and A Mom” and “Homebirth With an Obstetrician, A Series of 135 Out of Hospital Births”) and lecturer. He is an outspoken advocate of informed decision making, the midwifery model of care and human rights in childbirth, receiving the 2016 “Most Audacious” award from HRIC and the Association for Wholistic & Newborn Health. Hear more of his thoughts and advocacy for evidenced-based, reasonable choices on his podcast at www.drstuspodcast.com. He now works directly with home birthing midwives www.birthinginstincts.com. He offers hope for those women who cannot find supportive practitioners for VBAC, twin and breech deliveries.

Dr Shawn Walker is a midwife who specialises in care for women with a breech presenting baby at term. She is currently an NIHR Advanced Fellow, exploring the feasibility of a randomised trial (https://optibreech.uk/). Academically, she is based at King's College London, and clinically, she works with Chelsea and Westminster Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Her publications can be found at https://breechbirth.org.uk/publications/.

Dr Shawn Walker is a midwife who specialises in care for women with a breech presenting baby at term. She is currently an NIHR Advanced Fellow, exploring the feasibility of a randomised trial (https://optibreech.uk/). Academically, she is based at King's College London, and clinically, she works with Chelsea and Westminster Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Her publications can be found at https://breechbirth.org.uk/publications/.