Most Canberra mothers don't have a known midwife present when they give birth; they must accept whoever is on shift on the day a fact many hope will change after a national maternity services review.
Yesterday mothers affiliated with the Maternity Coalition, an umbrella group of organisations concerned with pregnancy, birth and post-natal care, gathered in Glebe Park as part of a National Day of Action to demand the reform of maternity services.
Canberra Birth Centre convener Emma Davidson has been trying to raise awareness of the Rudd Government's review, which began in September and is expected to conclude at the end of the year.
Ms Davidson would like all Australian women to be able to choose to have a known midwife as their primary care-giver because of the associated benefits.
''The way that women experience pregnancy and childbirth has a huge impact on their ability to parent.
''It contributes to things like post-natal depression rates and how women feel about the possibility of having more children in the future.
''Even just to have the choice of being able to see a midwife would be a very good step in the right direction.
''There's a strong link between a woman's feeling of safety trust in her birth environment and how her body responds to the process of labour.
''A woman who doesn't have that trusting relationship with the people who are helping her in labour is going to have a much harder time,'' she said.
Midwives also helped establish good breastfeeding habits, supported women during delivery and could help detect and deal with post-natal depression.
Ms Davidson said there was also demand in Canberra for another birth centre.
The existing centre provides a home-like environment with a midwife providing primary care. It's on the Canberra Hospital campus for ease of transfer in case of emergency.
But demand was so considerable that women who did not book in when six weeks pregnant were not guaranteed a place. Also, Gungahlin women with fast labours often ended up giving birth on their way there.
Ingrid McKenzie, of Lyneham, the mother of Kian, 3, and Hannah, 10, was one of the mothers raising her concerns.
''I'd like to see one-to-one midwifery for every woman.
''Every woman should have a known midwife at her birth, it doesn't matter what kind of birth it is.
Ms McKenzie said hospitals offered fragmented care. ''The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing and women have to repeat their story over and over.''
She estimated that less than 5 per cent of Canberra women giving birth received one-to-one midwifery.