Midwifery – What does a midwife do?
Tuesday, October 8th, 2013
This is National Midwifery Week, created by the American College of Nurse Midwives to celebrate and recognize midwives and midwife-led care.
A certified nurse-midwife is a registered nurse with advanced, specialized training and experience in taking care of pregnant women and delivering babies. Certified nurse-midwives are licensed to provide care before, during and after delivery.
There are several different types of midwives, each holding different certifications based on their education and/or experience. Certified nurse-midwives (CNMs) and certified midwives (CMs) attend approximately 93% of all midwife-attended births in the United States, and as of 2010 they are required to have a master’s degree in order to practice midwifery.
Midwifery care fits well with the services provided by obstetrician/gynecologists (OB/GYNs), who are experts in high risk, medical complications and surgery. By working with OB/GYNs, midwives can ensure that a specialist is available if a high-risk condition should arise during pregnancy or labor and delivery.
Once your baby is here, a midwife can assist with questions about breastfeeding (it’s not as easy as you think.) Midwives can provide you with health care in the postpartum period and between pregnancies at well woman visits. They can provide pain medications, birth control, screenings and vaccinations. They treat women from the teen years through menopause.
Here is a link to more information about midwives from the American College of Nurse Midwives.
