The Work of Midwives Essays - Health, Midwifery, Personal Life

"The Work of Midwives" By: Lauren A. Gonder There has been much controversy surrounding the roles of midwives with no hospitals , no drugs, and no supervision from a doctor. A clinical assessment has been formulated that could have implications for the United States, Britain's National Institute for Health, and Care Excellence. The conclusion was that it is safer for healthy women with uncomplicated pregnancies to give birth under the supervision of a midwife rather than in a hospital maternity ward run by doctors CITATION Edi14 \l 1033 (EditorialBoard, 2014) . The reasoning behind this conclusion is that doctors are much more likely to use interventions like forceps deliveries, spinal anesthesia, and cesarean sections, which all carry risks of infection and surgical accidents CITATION Edi14 \l 1033 (EditorialBoard, 2014) . Midwives are registered and certified nurses who have graduated from a nurse-midwifery education program accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Midwifery Education and have passed a national certification examination to receive the professional designation of certified nurse-midwife (CNM) CITATION Fer14 \l 1033 (Ferreira, 2014) . They typically have earned at least a master's degree from an accredited college, received clinical training, and passed a state licensing exam CITATION Edi14 \l 1033 (EditorialBoard, 2014) . There have been many studies that have shown that midwives do just as well or better than obstetricians in a low-risk case CITATION Edi14 \l 1033 (EditorialBoard, 2014) . A Certified Nurse Midwife's responsibilities are the same as a certified obstetrician, including prescribing pharmacologic treatment, depending on the state regulation CITATION Uni \l 1033 (Univ.Cinn.) . Midwives are not just central to providing obstetric and newborn care, they are also qualified to provide routine primary care and gynecological services. A woman can get their care from a CNM from puberty to menopause. Having a primary care provider that a woman can trust is very important. CNM's and other Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRN's) are a critical component of addressing the shortage of primary care physicians (PCP) CITATION Fer14 \l 1033 (Ferreira, 2014) . There are a record number of PCP's retiring, and fewer medical school graduates choosing primary care as a specialty CITATION Fer14 \l 1033 (Ferreira, 2014) . With the field of nursing expanding to include specialized practitioners with advanced t raining, education, and experience, CNM's and other types of APRN's can provide the primary care services to the patients that are having a challenging time finding a more permanent care provider. In a time of spiraling medical costs and the increasing demand for healthcare, midwives can offer a cost-effective way of providing good maternity care CITATION Edi14 \l 1033 (EditorialBoard, 2014) . The professional society of obstetricians have provided evidence that planned home births carry an increased risk of neonatal death, compare to a planned hospital birth CITATION Edi14 \l 1033 (EditorialBoard, 2014) . Some medical centers are trying to have the best of both worlds by allowing midwives independence within the hospital CITATION Edi14 \l 1033 (EditorialBoard, 2014) . If midwives could practice autonomously within a hospital then the low-risk cases that may develop complications, will have full and quick access to the hospital. The Mayo Clinic lets midwives handle low-risk pregnancies independently and hand off to doctors in the event a case becomes severe CITATION Edi14 \l 1033 (EditorialBoard, 2014) . The practice of midwifing has been around for a long time and it doesn't seem to be going away any time soon. Midwives have the education, training, and experience to provide primary care for women from puberty to menopause. If a woman has no history of complications during pregnancy, is expected to deliver a single baby at full term, and the baby is presenting head first, then the guidance a midwife can provide is just as good, if not better, as an obstetrician. There is a massive shortage of primary care physicians and CNM's have maintained the highest standards of care to be provided to their patients. In conclusion, t here is no good reason that midwives should not play an important role in childbirth as long as the risk of complication is minimal.