Newborn dies after mother uses ‘home-birthing’ pool hired from influencer Emily Lal
A newborn baby in Australia died after her mother delivered her in a ‘home-birthing’ pool hired from freebirth-promoting influencer Emily Lal.
A newborn baby in Australia died after her mother delivered her in a ‘home-birthing’ pool hired from freebirth-promoting influencer Emily Lal. As per the findings of the Coroners Court of Victoria, it is “unlikely” that the baby girl would have died had she been born in a hospital or if a midwife had been present during the birth in December 2022.
The mother, referred to as Mrs E in the coroner’s report, was 41 years old when she fell pregnant with Baby E in March 2022. She did not see a general practitioner (GP) or obstetrician for regular antenatal tests and scans, and she planned to birth at home in a birthing pool, the report said.
During her pregnancy, she went to a general practitioner only once, and that too to ascertain whether there were two heartbeats or one. Mrs E declined to have a blood screen and ultrasound. Instead, he informed the GP that she had a “team” organising the birth.
Renting a home-birthing pool
Before the delivery, Mrs E contacted Instagram influencer Emily Lal – known as The Authentic Birthkeeper on Instagram – to rent a birthing pool.
Labour began on December 26, 2022, and Mrs E spent the next two days almost continuously in the pool. The water in the pool was changed only once during this time.
{{/usCountry}}Labour began on December 26, 2022, and Mrs E spent the next two days almost continuously in the pool. The water in the pool was changed only once during this time.
{{/usCountry}}The baby was born late on December 28 after a prolonged labour, but the placenta was not delivered and the umbilical cord remained uncut. By the next morning, the parents noticed something was wrong. They claim they contacted Lal via video call before calling an ambulance, but paramedics were unable to revive the infant.
A preventable death
{{/usCountry}}The baby was born late on December 28 after a prolonged labour, but the placenta was not delivered and the umbilical cord remained uncut. By the next morning, the parents noticed something was wrong. They claim they contacted Lal via video call before calling an ambulance, but paramedics were unable to revive the infant.
A preventable death
{{/usCountry}}An autopsy found the baby died from neonatal pneumonia, meconium aspiration and chorioamnionitis, with bacteria likely introduced via the birthing pool.
{{/usCountry}}An autopsy found the baby died from neonatal pneumonia, meconium aspiration and chorioamnionitis, with bacteria likely introduced via the birthing pool.
{{/usCountry}}The coroner concluded the death was preventable and would likely not have occurred had the birth taken place in hospital or under the care of a trained midwife.
Who is Emily Lal?
{{/usCountry}}The coroner concluded the death was preventable and would likely not have occurred had the birth taken place in hospital or under the care of a trained midwife.
Who is Emily Lal?
{{/usCountry}}Emily Lal is a Melbourne-based Instagram influencer who goes by the Instagram handle @the_authentic_birthkeeper. She positions herself as a "birth keeper" or freebirth birthkeeper, supporting women who choose to birth outside the traditional medical system.
Her website emphasizes guiding women to "take back birth", trusting their intuition, and reconnecting with their bodies. In podcasts, she describes her own home births, one attended by a private midwife and another entirely unassisted, as transformative and liberating experiences that inspired her work.
