TITLE: Birth in times of Pandemic

The family in this series experienced a gentle homebirth in times of the pandemic, when mothers in Germany were sometimes not even sure which maternity hospital they could go to.
This family was able to experience the luxury of being cared for by two midwives at the same time during the birth. A really extraordinary situation for a German mother, but a real blessing for the family, who were able to take their baby into the family in a relaxed and safe manner.
In Germany, 98% of children are usually born in hospital.
Not every clinic can afford obstetrics today, even if the average salary of a midwife in Germany is still below that of a nurse. The reasons are the need for carers and very high insurance costs. This means that 40 percent of maternity wards have been closed since 1991.
During the Covid pandemic, it is even more difficult for mothers in Germany to give birth to their babies safely, as admission to the next larger clinic can often not be guaranteed due to the many closings and fathers also have no access to the clinic during the lockdown to have.
For these reasons, this family decided to have this homebirth.

AUTHOR: Susanne Krauss (Germany)

After completing her studies as a graduate designer, Susanne Krauss worked as an artist, graphic designer
and illustrator of more than 100 different children‘s books for publishers like Bonnier, Ravensburger, Coppenrath
and many more.
In 2004 her career as a photographer started.
She works for publishers and agencies, as well as clients from business, culture and society.
Customer list (excerpt): Bayer AG, BMW AG, Mc Kinsey, Random House, Süddeutsche
Susanne has also been working as a documentary family and especially birth photographer since 2011.