Midwifery Care

INTRODUCTION

Having a baby is one of life's greatest and most challenging experiences! Having a midwife- a woman knowing and experienced in the ways of birth- assist you can help make this process a whole lot less lonely, less frightening, and even something you will look back on with pleasure and a good deal of pride.Midwives are women, mothers, sisters, wives and confidants just like you are! Because of this, and because of their unique training, midwives can often understand what you are feeling and thinking and can act as a listening ear and feeling heart during times of stress or indecision,during times of celebration, or  times of simple reflection and remembering.Your midwife has the honor of accompanying you along  the journey of pregnancy, birth, and the early weeks of parenting your newborn.Every woman's path is different and the decisions that will need to be made will belong to her and her family. The midwife understands this yet chooses to offer her knowledge, her support, and her human caring at a time when a woman may feel vulnerable and anxious, triumphant and powerful, weary and reluctant...all in a short space of time!

Partly because of their ability to integrate the emotional/psychological aspects of labor and birth with a strong medical/physiological foundation, midwives' care is recognized around the world as the safest way for most women to deliver their babies.Even in areas of North America with high rates of technological intervention in birth such as Cesarean, the care of a midwife has been proven to help keep most births normal. And normal means your baby arrives ready to greet you awake, alert, and responsive with you,the mother, not suffering from the ill-effects of major surgery or drugs.This ,in turn, means you spend your early weeks after the birth enjoying your baby and your family instead of recovering from an operation!

  If you are interested in working towards a natural birth experience and would like to do this in the comfort and security of your home, if you enjoy becoming informed and making your own decisions about your pregnancy and birth, if you are looking for more personalized, one-on-one care, then you need to read more....

SOME BACKGROUND

I studied premed  at Acadia University in Wolfville, graduating with a B.Sc. in biology and psychology.After graduation, I did postgraduate work in theology and counselling, just before discovering the fascinating world of birth.After the birth of my first child I trained to become a childbirth teacher and taught classes for 6 years to both home and hospital couples.In 1986 I moved with my husband and two sons to Toronto and apprenticed there with an active Ontario midwife.I began my practice in Nova Scotia in 1987 and went to Edmonton, Alberta in 1989 to gain additional experience with members of the Edmonton Midwifery Group.In 1999 I applied  and was accepted into the Prior Learning and Experience Assessment program run by the College of Midwives of Ontario.This rigorous assessment program is offered to qualified midwives from around the world who are interested in practicing in the province of Ontario. I graduated from this program in 2000 and returned to my practice in Nova Scotia.I  am trained in CPR & First Aid, Neonatal Resuscitation, and  certified in the Emergency Skills Workshop training run by the Association of Ontario Midwives.I have now attended several hundred births in the Atlantic Provinces, primarily at home.

  I have been active in midwifery politics for almost two decades now and have been a founding member/past President of the following Nova Scotian organizations: the Midwifery Coalition of Nova Scotia(consumer support group), Prepared Childbirth Association of Nova Scotia(childbirth education/teacher training group), and the Association of Nova Scotia Midwives(professional organization for practising midwives).I am currently co-chair of the Association of Nova Scotia Midwives and am a member of the Primary Maternity Care Working Group of the Department of Health which is examining legislative options for midwives in this province.

  I now live near Wolfville with my husband and four sons, all of whom were born at home with the assistance of two pioneer Nova Scotian midwives- Joan Robertson and Charlene MacLellan. Joan,a practising nurse, worked doing home births with Dr. Winston Makhan in Pictou County in the late 1970's and I was fortunate enough to find her and coax her into coming down to the Valley and attending my first birth! Charlene  began her practice here in 1980 after doing postgraduate obstetrical nurses' training at the University of Alberta. She had extensive hospital maternity and pediatric experience but eventually devoted herself to a home birth practice after she became convinced that homebirths were a safe and necessary birthing option for women. Charlene and I worked together for over a decade before she retired from active practice but she is considered by many to have  founded  midwifery in Nova Scotia.This site is dedicated to her in honor of her tireless work on behalf of the women and families of this province.

BACKUP MIDWIVES AND BIRTH ASSISTANTS

I work with several other midwives/birth assistants in my practice as we always try to have two trained people at every home birth. My primary backup midwife is Karen Robb who has moved recently to Nova Scotia from Newfoundland where she was doing midwifery and women's advocacy work. Before coming to Canada she worked for 2 1/2 years on a midwife-led birthing unit in London,England.She formally trained in Aberdeen, Scotland and before that did a homebirth apprenticeship with a Calgary midwife. Karen also has birth center experience from Austin, Texas. Karen's practice here in Nova Scotia is known as "Choices Midwifery Care" and she offers pre- and postnatal care to women planning hospital births as well as prenatal classes for individuals or groups.                                                                                                                          

I also work with Marlo Shinyei who trained as a midwife with Noreen Walker - well-known Alberta homebirth midwife! Occasionally I work with birth assistant Cheryl Hartlen who is a very experienced labor coach and prenatal teacher from the Waverly area. Cheryl also has her own private labor assistant practice called "Gentle Birth Choices".