I felt this too Mayaness. I put a lot of noses out of joint at a mums group by telling a pregnant woman that the safest birth she could go for is a hombirth, since it offers the same mortality and the lowest levels of morbidity compared to all other models of care. She said "i have a friend who tried to homebirth and ended up having a c-section" and i said "Yes, and i'm willing to bet she really really needed it, whereas those who go to obstetric departments get them even if they don't need them".
People find it very difficult to hear that what they see as inaction offers the safest route - they percieve the doctor's interest in "saving" the baby from birth, even when there are no complicating factors bar the intervention itself, as a positive action they can take in making the baby safer. Until women begin to believe birth is inherently safe they will never believe that intervention can carry inherent dangers. People want to "do" something, the are very poor at wait-and-see.
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