Midwife Career Guide
Learn About the Different Midwife Careers and Get Midwife Salary Info
Learn About the Different Midwife Careers and Get Midwife Salary Info
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| | A midwife is an expert in normal birth and is recognized throughout the world as the most appropriate maternity care provider for most women. Nurse midwifes have been used to aid in childbirth for thousands of years, but many women have chosen hospital births with doctors until more recently. Today many women are opting for natural births with midwives as alternative and natural medicine awareness becomes more prevalent. |
General Midwifery Information
Definition of a Midwife
Midwives are trained professionals who offer care, education, counseling and support of women and newborns during pregnancy and the postpartum period. The midwifery model of care includes the following responsibilities:
- Monitoring the physical, psychological and social well-being of the mother throughout the childbearing cycle.
- Providing the mother with individualized education, counseling and prenatal care.
- Providing continuous hands-on assistance during labor and delivery, as well as postpartum support.
- Minimizing technological intervention.
- Identifying and referring women who require obstetrical attention.
Midwifery may be practiced in an out-of-hospital or hospital setting. There are two broad categories of midwives that exist in the United States:
- Nurse-midwives – Educated in both nursing and midwifery.
- Direct-entry midwives – Professionally credentialed in midwifery alone.
The Midwifery Model Versus
The Medical Model of Maternity Care
Judith Rooks, author Midwifery and Childbirth in America addresses the difference between the midwifery model and the medical model of maternity care:
"Medicine focuses on the pathologic potential of pregnancy and birth, midwifery focuses on its normalcy and potential for health. Pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding are normal bodily and family functions. That they are susceptible to pathology does not negate their essential normalcy and the importance of the non-medical aspects of these critical processes and events in people's lives."
Midwives are trained to know about medical risks so that, if they identify complications early and collaborate with physicians, they can assist patients with medical care to treat serious problems. According to Judith, midwifes provide more than just medical assistance, they "focus on each woman as a unique person, in the context of her family and her life." This focus provides a more in-depth relationship and understanding with the mother, helping midwives to support the mother in reaching her pregnancy and birth goals.
Midwives believe that women's bodies are designed for birth. They do their part in protecting and supporting the normal processes of labor, delivery, and the reuniting of the mother and newborn after their separation at birth with as little interference as possible.
The Difference Between a Licensed Midwife
and a Certified Nurse Midwife
A licensed midwife attends an independent midwifery school and is only accepted for practice in about 11 states. A certified nurse midwife has a nursing degree and can practice anywhere in the U.S.
In the states that license midwives, students sit for a licensing exam after completing their education and take the professional title of a licensed midwife (LM)once they pass the exam. The licensed midwife generally works in an independent practice. Some LMs deliver babies in the home or in birthing centers.
Certified nurse-midwives (CNM) are trained and regulated as part of the nursing profession. Many have established independent practices, but they also can be found working in HMOs, hospitals, private clinics and birth centers. A CNM must be a registered nurse before beginning training to become a midwife (or must earn the nursing degree during the midwifery training).
The Careers That Exist for Midwife School Graduates
Most direct-entry midwives are self-employed in independent, private midwifery practices. Others work in public or community health agencies in administrative, educational or counseling positions. Salaried job opportunities for licensed midwives are limited.
The majority of direct-entry midwives practice in out-of-hospital settings and oversee births at homes and birth centers. However, hospitals around the country are beginning to offer midwives hospital privileges as more and more women are choosing midwives over conventional medicine.
Nurse-midwives can be employed in hospital group practices or in independent, private midwifery practices.
Midwifery Salary
Midwifery income is largely dependent on the type of practice and the geographical location of the practice. Many midwives choose to practice in rural communities or among the poorer neighborhoods. However, Midwifery is becoming a more popular childbirth option among many people in the country.
Midwifery salaries are more commonly comprised of a base salary plus bonuses, depending on the midwife's practice. Today, many midwives own their own business or share a partnered business so their salaries are not as largely impacted from productivity bonuses. According to the American College of Nurse-Midwives, the median midwife salary in 2007 was $76,400 with 34 percent of nurse-midwives receiving productivity bonuses.
Sources: Jones, Rosemary. Educational and Career Opportunities in Alternative Medicine. 1999-2007.
Kate McConnell, from the Seattle Midwifery School.
Pence Rooks, Judith. Midwifery Model vs. Medical Model: Midwifery and Childbirth in America. 1997.
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