Ep 312: Why This OB-GYN Walked Away From the System with Dr. Nathan Riley

About this episode

Dr. Nathan Riley discusses his departure from conventional medicine to support home birth and midwifery-led care, highlighting the limitations of hospital training and the importance of autonomy in the birth experience.

Hospital birth may not be the right path for every OB/GYN. This week, I’m in conversation with Dr. Nathan Riley, an OB-GYN and palliative care physician who left conventional medicine to support home birth and midwifery-led care. We talk about what the system gets wrong, what it does right, and how honoring true autonomy can transform the birth experience. You’ll hear two OBs with very different paths, get real about training gaps, liability fears, and what actually supports healthy birth. Whether you’re planning a home birth, a hospital birth, or you’re just curious about your options, this is an episode that challenges assumptions and opens possibilities. You’ll learn: Why Dr. Riley left the hospital system — and what he does now How hospital training limits women’s birth choices What really happens during an emergency C-section The untold truth about vaginal breech birth What autonomy actually looks like in labor (and how to prepare for it) Resources mentioned: Dr. Nathan Riley on Instagram Born Free Method Beloved Holistics Free Resources to Help You Birth With Power Get the support, clarity, and confidence you deserve. Download any of my free tools designed to help you…

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Nicole C. Rankins

Guest: Dr. Nathan Riley

Topics covered

• home birth
• midwifery-led care
• OB-GYN perspectives
• birth autonomy
• hospital birth
• training gaps in medicine

Keywords

• OB-GYN
• home birth
• hospital birth
• birth choices
• emergency C-section
• vaginal breech birth
• labor autonomy
• birth experience

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Born Free Method, Beloved Holistics

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