Call 425-258-7550 or complete the form to schedule an appointment with a midwife.
Midwifery
The certified nurse midwives of Providence are registered nurses with specialized post-graduate education, midwifery training and certification. In addition to delivering babies and helping moms prepare for motherhood, our certified nurse-midwives provide comprehensive women's health care including annual exams, family planning counseling, menopausal care, and primary care for women in all stages of life.
Highlights of our program include:
- The lowest cesarean rate nationally for a program of this size. Awarded by American College of Nurse Midwives for nine years in a row. Our cesarean rate is 7-8 percent of births, year after. Nationally cesarean rates are more than 30 percent.
- Medication-assisted treatment program for patients with substance abuse disorders, to help keep moms clean and on the path to recovery.
- Centering Pregnancy, a nationally recognized model of group prenatal care that encourages active participation and community support by connecting families expecting babies at the same time.
- An innovative partnership with out-of-hospital midwives to ensures safe transitions, when needed, to the hospital from home or external birth centers. This is done in a manner that ensures safety and promotes continuity of care.
Our midwives and team of committed support staff care deeply about your wellbeing, the health of your pregnancy, and your journey into parenthood. Midwife services include:
- Breastfeeding Support
- Birthing
- Bladder Health
- Breast Care
- Cervical Cancer Screening
- Family planning/Birth Control
- Gynecology
- Hormone Therapy
- Infertility
- Maternity
- Menopause
- Midwifery
- Natural Family Planning
- Nutritional Counseling
- Obstetrics
- Ovarian Cancer
- Pelvic Floor Disorders
- Pelvic Health
- Pregnancy, Labor and Birth
- Prenatal Care
- Perinatal Mental Health
- Sexual Health
- Urinary Incontinence
- Well Women Exams
- Women’s Health Services
When you arrive, you’ll check in and present your photo ID and insurance card. Then, a certified nurse midwife will go over your medical history and perform a complete physical examination. Together, you’ll discuss your birthing plan and whether you prefer having natural childbirth or using pain medication. We’re always happy to answer questions. And, we encourage your family to participate during every step of your pregnancy.
Save time by filling out the one of following forms before your visit
You’ll deliver your baby in the Family Maternity Center in the Pavilion for Women and Children at Providence Regional, Pacific Campus. This comfortable, home-like setting is where families experience the entire process – labor, birth and recovery – in a private birthing suite designed with your comfort in mind. Your certified nurse midwife will be with you in your suite, encouraging you and helping you cope with discomfort. After your baby is delivered, your nurse midwife stays close by to check on you.
Take a free, 30-minute guided tour of the Providence Family Maternity Center at the Pavilion for Women and Children (pre-registration is required).
- Register by calling 425-258-7550
- Ask your prenatal care provider for a registration form
The most common misconception is that midwives only attend home births. The truth is certified midwives also practice in many different settings including hospitals, medical offices, free standing birth centers, clinics, and other private settings. Most hospitals in the United States offer in-house midwifery services. Many women who choose a midwife for their care opt to deliver their baby in a hospital. In fact, 95 percent of births attended by midwives were in a hospital setting.
Midwives have expert knowledge and skill in caring for women throughout pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period. But they do much more. Midwives can offer health services to women through all stages of life – from the teenage years until menopause. They provide general health check-ups, screenings, vaccinations, well-woman gynecologic care, and family planning counseling.
Certified nurse-midwives and certified midwives hold master’s degrees and must pass national certification exams. Some also continue to advance their training, gaining the skills to be the surgical first assistant during Cesarean sections, perform frenotomies, and perform ultrasound exams.
Midwives work with all members of the health care team, including nurses, physicians, physical therapists, and social service agencies. They also work with obstetricians/gynecologists, the experts for high risk pregnancies, complicated medical problems, and surgeries. In these cases, midwives can work closely with experts and assure their patients that a specialist is available should a high risk condition develop. The goal is to ensure that each woman receives the right care for her individual needs.
Midwives are experts in helping women cope with labor. They can explain pain relief options and help women develop a birth plan that fits specific needs and desires. Whether it is relaxation techniques or movement during labor, intravenous medication, nitrous oxide inhalation, or an epidural, the midwife’s goal is to support each woman’s approach to birth.
The most rewarding part of being a midwife is the honor and privilege to be with a woman during one of the most important moments of her life: the birth of her baby. To share in the excitement of hearing the baby’s heartbeat for the first time, the journey through pregnancy, and the magic of childbirth. Every woman’s journey is unique, and it is the duty of the midwife to guide her safely to her new role as a mother.
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