A Journey of Perseverance and Commitment to change the culture and hospital system away from the needs of doctors towards those of the birthing mother.
Ágnes Geréb, born on December 20, 1952, is a name synonymous with both pioneering change and legal challenges in the realm of childbirth. Her journey is a testament to her relentless pursuit of transforming maternity care, championing paternal involvement, and advocating for homebirths in Hungary.
On the 20th of December in 1952, she took her first breath in Szeged, Hungary. This charming town became the backdrop for her life’s adventures – where she studied, performed in an amateur theater, toiled, and where she welcomed three of her children. The stage of her life expanded to Budapest, where her fourth child came into the world.
Ágnes’ story is woven from the threads of resilience, dedication, and a deep love for life. Her roots run deep, intertwined with a legacy of survival. Her parents, a retired pediatrician and the late Prof. Dr. György Geréb, were both Holocaust survivors. Their strength and resilience laid the foundation for my journey. Geréb embarked on her journey by earning her Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Szeged in 1977. She specialized in Obstetrics in 1982 and expanded her knowledge with a B.Sc. in Psychology from the Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest in 1986.
In 1994, Geréb joined the Daylight Birth Centre, where she was a valuable team member until October 5, 2010 when the unpleasant event of her legal adventure took place. She initiated independent midwife practice in 1989, opening Hungary’s first and second Birth Centres dedicated to non-hospital deliveries. Over her career, Geréb welcomed 3,500 babies into the world through homebirths.
Ágnes Geréb’s legacy lies in her groundbreaking approach to childbirth. She introduced a revolutionary concept: allowing fathers to actively participate in deliveries, both in hospital settings and the comfort of home. Her Napvilág birthing centre became the epicenter of this transformation, where fathers played an integral role in the birthing process.
Geréb’s audacious move in 1977, smuggling fathers into labor rooms without permission, challenged norms. Although it initially resulted in a six-month ban from practice, it eventually led to a transformative shift in the approach to childbirth in Hungary.
“I started delivering babies outside of hospitals in the 1980s, precisely when Hungarian society was occupied on every level with destroying the oppressive system. These lawsuits and criminal proceedings against me are actually about how societal need for home births has become progressively stronger, whose right to exist could not be suddenly recognized without the bribery-based medical society sweeping away the expert truths tied to my person over the previous decades. The solution to this irreconcilable contradiction was to violently shunt me aside as the home-birth black sheep, without whom the home-birth considered to date to be dangerous and worthy of persecution will be nice and good.”
“Undisturbed birth means that there are no disturbing circumstances either within the mother giving birth or around her. Undisturbed birth is based on the free choice made after getting enough information to choose. Undisturbed birth can happen anywhere, in an institution, in a birth house, in a birth centre or at home.” Ágnes Geréb
However, Geréb’s path was not without its tribulations. In 2007, her medical license was revoked for three years due to a tragic incident in 2000 involving the death of a newborn. Undeterred, she continued her mission, but in 2009, she faced manslaughter charges related to another home birth where a baby tragically lost life.
In 2010, the situation took a dire turn as she was arrested in Budapest on accusations of negligent malpractice. Her arrest triggered outrage among home birth activists worldwide, with the British Royal College of Midwives condemning her detention. Despite her legal battles, Geréb’s commitment to her cause remained unwavering.
On December 21, 2010, Ágnes Geréb was released from prison but placed under house arrest. Yet, the fight for her freedom continued. On March 23, 2011, she received a two-year minimum security prison sentence, a sentence later pardoned on June 28, 2018, by the President of Hungary.
Ágnes Geréb’s list of achievements is extensive. She aimed to train independent midwives capable of conducting homebirths without her presence, and she succeeded. She also led Information Weeks, educating fellow midwives on pregnancy, birth, and childbearing from 1993 onwards.
Her influence extended internationally as she invited experts to Hungary. She was present and actively involved when various organizations like the Hungarian Alternatal Foundation (1992), ENCA (European Network of Childbirth Associations) (1993), and the Association of Independent Midwives (2008) were established.
Moreover, she played a pivotal role in introducing the concept of doula in Hungary, offering doula training. Those first doula students of hers founded MODULE (Association of Doulas in Hungary), which now trains hospital doulas. Approximately 15 doulas collaborated with Daylight Birth Center alongside independent midwives until October 5, 2010, when things changed.
Ágnes Geréb’s impact resonates far beyond her legal battles. Her advocacy and dedication have helped raise awareness and humanize hospital births in Hungary, making her a trailblazer in the world of childbirth.
Ágnes Geréb’s life and work serve as a testament to the power of dedication and conviction. Her tireless efforts to transform birthing practices and advocate for the involvement of fathers have left an indelible mark on maternity care in Hungary and around the world. Her journey is a source of inspiration for all those who champion change, regardless of the challenges they may face.
“After a long time, the Hungarian state has finally recognized that people have as much right to give birth outside of institutions as within institutions. The key to security is freedom of choice based on real information. This is needed in order for women and families to address birth in safety and with security. In any case, childbirth is trying. It is in society’s interest not to add humiliation and trauma. Women choosing to give birth at home play not a small role in the humanization of birth within institutions. If my work has helped in any way in getting closer to a more just and person-friendly system, then there was some profit, positive contribution to this long, difficult period, this witch-hunt.”
— Ágnes Geréb, interview to Index.hu
“A woman’s interests cannot be separated (either legally or biologically) from those of the baby inside her. It is unquestionable that childbirth has the least complications if no medical intervention takes place, and if no medical intervention is needed. The ’balm’ that makes childbirth run smoothly is oxytocin, a hormone that is released in the body of the mother during the process of birth. If the mother feels bad or unpleasant physically or psychically the release of oxytocin gets hindered. So everything that helps the comfort of the mother and facilitates inside processes flow freely (dim light, warmth, scents, touches, movements, sounds, etc.) helps the health of the baby as well.”
— Ágnes Geréb, interview excerpt