What is Midwifery Care?

Q: What is a Midwife?

A: Midwife literally means “with woman.” The care provided by midwives reflects a deep understanding of the needs of women and newborns and the intricate process of labor, birth, mothering and breastfeeding. Midwives are the main caregivers to childbearing women worldwide.

Q: What is midwifery care?

A: Dedicated to the belief that pregnancy and birth are normal processes in a woman's life, midwives provide personalized, compassionate, and thorough maternity care. This includes comprehensive physical and emotional care for a mother and her baby through pregnancy, labor, birth and continuing after the baby is born. Our midwives are present during the labor and birth, which is often not the case with other care providers who "check-in" periodically during labor and are present for the delivery itself

Midwives specialize in primary health care for women of all ages, including pap smears, breast exams, physicals, fertility counseling, and family planning.

Plus More…

• Midwives spend more time with their patients during prenatal visits, making certain that all questions and concerns of the mother and her family are answered and addressed.
  
  
• Midwives are specialists in normal pregnancy and focus on maximizing prenatal wellness. Obstetricians are specialists in complicated pregnancy and surgery. More than 80% of women have normal pregnancies and labors.
  
  
• Midwives are well trained to recognize any complications that may affect the health and safety of a mother and/or her infant and will consult with physicians as needed for complications. They provide ongoing support if a family needs more technological care.
  

Q: Why should I see a Nurse-Midwife?

A: Nurse-midwifery care is woman-centered and based on the philosophy that health care should be safe and satisfying. CNMs make every effort to respect the human dignity and cultural diversity of their clients. They are committed to promoting self-determination, the right to obtain complete information about the care, and enhancing the normal process of pregnancy and birth through education and supportive intervention.

Women who are healthy typically do not need extensive medical technology to conceive, birth, or feed their babies. Midwives provide information and support to allow them to care for themselves and their babies in a natural, peaceful way.

Q: How safe is midwifery care?

A: Numerous studies have uniformly concluded that Nurse-midwifery care has outcomes that are equal and in some ways better to those of physicians with the same types of patients. CNMs are particularly adept at providing care and increased communication that helps women prevent complications. A standard of Nurse-Midwifery care is that CNMs have a mechanism for obtaining medical consultation, collaboration, and referral when questions or problems arise. If a woman needs care beyond the midwifery scope of care, the Birth & Beyond midwives assist in accessing and implementing the appropriate level of care for the client’s particular needs.

Q: Where should I give birth?

A: Environment can play a crucial role in having a safe and satisfying experience during labor and birth. At Birth & Beyond we consider a woman’s health status, her desires and potential for complications. Together the midwives and the family determine together what will be the most comfortable and safe place to give birth. The Birth & Beyond midwives are able to attend births in the home environment, as well as in a labor and delivery room at Hartford Hospital.