Work has begun on the construction of the new Bethlehem Birthing Centre, expected to open next year. Photo / George Novak
The woman behind a first of its kind birthing centre in Tauranga is seeking birth stories from different cultures as construction begins. The stories will be collected and shared with mums-to-be at the all new $5 million Bethlehem Birthing Centre when the building is completed next year.
The centre will
occupy the second storey of a new building being built at the corner of State Highway 2 and Carmichael Rd.
In August, the Bay of Plenty Times revealed plans for the new centre. It is the first privately operated, publicly funded birthing centre in the region, with the Bay of Plenty District Health Board paying for each birth and postnatal stay at the centre as they occur.
The centre is the brainchild of Tauranga businesswoman Chloe Wright, who said the centre was about providing a journey rather than just focusing on the birthing experience. It was for this reason that she was collecting birth experience stories from different cultures.
Ms Wright used the Samoan culture as an example, where both mother and baby were often massaged, she said.
