Author Archives: midwife - Page 5
International Definition of a Midwife
According to the International Confederation of Midwives, a midwife is "a person who meets the ICM Definition of the Midwife who has been educated and trained to proficiency in the…
Why Is Labor Longer? and How Long is “Normal” Labor, Anyway?
Reported in an article by KJ Dell'Antonia in the New York Times on April 2, 2012, "births during the last decade take longer than they did in the early 1960s;”…
The Most Scientific Birth Is Often the Least Technological Birth
Dr. Alice Dreger writes in the April 2012 issue of The Atlantic, "If you look at scientific literature, you find over and over again that many interventions increase risk to…
Law Grants Massachusetts Nurse-Midwives Authority to Write Prescriptions
BOSTON, MA, Feb 2, 2012 - Governor Deval Patrick signed a bill that expands the privileges and responsibilities of nurse-midwives. The governor has signed legislation that authorizes nurse-midwives to write…
Millions Still Die Due to Lack of Midwives: U.N.
Nepalese men carrying woman in obstructed labor to hospital More investment in midwifery could save many of the millions of babies and hundreds of thousands of women who still die…
Midwives vs. Doctors in US Maternal Mortality Crisis
A journalist discusses the increasing number of midwife-attended births and the controversy around this as maternal mortality increases in the United States. Hannah Rubenstein's interesting article about the increasing number…
Home Birth in the Netherlands: The System and Its Safety
The Netherlands has a system of pregnancy and birth care that is unique in the Western world. The majority of Dutch midwives work independently from obstetricians, are the sole care…
18-YEAR REVIEW SHOWS OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE OF HIGH-QUALITY CARE OF CERTIFIED NURSE-MIDWIVES
A systematic review to be published in the September/October 2011 issue of Nursing Economic$ reports that care provided by certified nurse-midwives (CNMs) is associated with comparable or better outcomes than…
Breastfeeding – How Are You Going to Feed That Baby?
Breastfeeding is one of those things like smoking cessation or exercise that we are constantly told that we “should” do, and feel guilty if we don’t. (more…)
Pain Relief During Labor and Birth
As an expectant mother approaching your due date, a concern that looms large in your mind is the pain that you expect to experience during labor. Will you be able to cope? (more…)