We meet for prenatal visits once a month through
month seven, twice
during month eight, and every week thereafter until your birth.
Prenatal visits are an average of 60 minutes long to provide plenty of
time for questions. We will be in ongoing phone contact as you
near your due date, discussing and evaluating signs of labor
as they come. I will care for you throughout your labor and
birth with the assistance of at least one other midwife or apprentice,
consistently monitoring your and your baby's well being. You can labor in a warm birthing tub and have a waterbirth, if you choose.
After the
birth, we will care for
your newborn at your bedside, assist with breastfeeding,
and stay with you until you and your baby are settled in and ready to
sleep, usually about three hours after your birth.
In the following weeks, we provide postpartum and newborn care in your home, referring you to a pediatrician in the event that there are any concerns. We visit you in your home at least twice in the first five days postpartum, usually when your baby is one day and four days old, more as needed. We will have postpartum visits at one week, three weeks, and six weeks after your birth at the minimum, more as needed.
Health history review and discussion, ongoing assessment of mother’s health and well-being through discussion, vital signs, urine testing, urinalysis and laboratory testing as appropriate; assessment of fetal position, growth, and well-being; counseling regarding optimum self-care during pregnancy and birth.
We recommend the following laboratory tests to all
pregnant clients:
blood type and factor, complete blood count, antibody screen,
hemoglobin testing for anemia, blood tests for syphilis, hepatitis B,
rubella, and cultures for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and group-B
streptococcus. Other tests are available and will be
discussed and offered. These may be
recommended based on your individual needs, including blood glucose
testing, urinalysis, vaginal cultures, Pap smear, and quad screening
for fetal anomalies. Amniocentesis and ultrasound are available by
referral.
Ethical healthcare is based on the principle of
“informed consent,” in which the client
is fully informed about the risks and benefits of a recommended
procedure before giving consent.
Taking it a step further, our midwifery practice is based on “informed
choice.” We believe that not only do you have the right to consent to
or refuse a procedure, you have the
right to hear about and choose between all available procedures and
also the
responsibility to make these choices for yourself and your child.
Your midwife is your resource, support, and guide in these
choices. It is our responsibility to provide you with complete
information regarding your options and our abilities and limits.
No procedures or tests will be performed on you or your child without
your understanding and choice, except rarely in the case of an
emergency, and these
will be reviewed during your prenatal care.
You are your baby’s primary caregiver and we are a skilled and knowledgeable resource for you.
Some health insurance organizations cover home birth with midwives, and more cover birth-center births with midwives. We can contact your insurance provider to determine the amount of coverage they provide, if any. In the event that your insurance does not cover our services, we can discuss a payment plan that works for both of us.
Your primary midwife will be available to you by cell phone and text messaging 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, as needed. Barring unforeseeable emergencies, there will be no wondering who will be there when you go into labor. Unlike most hospital birth care providers, we attend all our clients' births. We don't take days "off-call" around your due date.