MELBOURNE — Emily Lal testified at a coroner's inquest in Melbourne regarding the death of Stacey Warnecke, who died from postpartum hemorrhage after giving birth at home. Warnecke died at Frankston Hospital on September 29 with her husband and Lal present.

Warnecke paid Lal $6,000 for a full freebirth support package. Lal stated that Warnecke decided to pursue a freebirth before contacting her. During the testimony, Lal asked the court, "How would I help people stay safe during birth?"

After delivering the placenta, Warnecke lost up to 1.5 liters of blood and experienced breathing difficulties. Lal asked Warnecke three times within five minutes whether she wanted an ambulance. Warnecke told Lal, "I don't want you to leave me." and agreed to call an ambulance on the third request. Paramedics arrived while Warnecke was experiencing a massive postpartum hemorrhage. She died at the hospital several hours later from complications related to the hemorrhage.

Lal stated, "I'm attending as a friend in a support role. I don't think me being there makes the birth more safe." She added, "I'm not clinically trained. It's not my role to assess blood loss." When Warnecke inquired if her blood loss was normal, Lal replied, "It's more than I would consider to be normal." Lal acknowledged that in hindsight she might have pushed harder for an ambulance call, but maintained she would not make the final decision. She said, "I wouldn't say to her, 'I think you've lost too much blood.' That's not my role."

Lal completed an online course offered by the Free Birth Society and agreed that postpartum hemorrhage poses greater danger at home than in a hospital. Medical data presented at the inquest indicated that postpartum hemorrhage is rarely fatal in hospital settings with fast medical care. When asked if Warnecke would have benefited from faster medical access, Lal stated, "I can't say what would have happened."

During a recorded paramedic call, Lal reported that Warnecke was having difficulty breathing, but stated the bleeding had stopped. While Warnecke was in surgery, Lal returned to the home, cleaned the area, and removed a bloodied carpet to her personal disposal bin. Lal sought legal advice after Warnecke's death. She declined to provide a statement to police, stating, "I wasn't legally required to [make a statement to police] so I opted to not to do that." Lal ceased working as a birthkeeper immediately following Warnecke's death. The health complaints commissioner suspended Lal from providing or advertising health services.