A midwife is a healthcare provider specializing in normal pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and newborn care.

The Midwives Alliance of North America defines midwives as “traditional care providers for mothers and infants. Midwives are trained professionals with expertise and skills in supporting people to maintain healthy pregnancies and have optimal births and recoveries during the postpartum period. Midwives provide women with individualized care uniquely suited to their physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and cultural needs. Midwifery is a woman-centered empowering model of maternity care that is utilized in all of the countries of the world with the best maternal and infant outcomes such as The Netherlands, United Kingdom and Canada.” 

We are both Licensed Midwives (state licensure) who are licensed and overseen by the Tennessee’s Medical Board of Examiners (the same agency that licenses physicians), and Certified Professional Midwives (national certification). 

The Midwives Model of Care is based in the belief that pregnancy and birth are normal life events and includes: 

• Monitoring the physical, psychological and social well-being of the pregnant person throughout the childbearing cycle 

• Providing the pregnant person with individualized education, counseling, and prenatal care, continuous hands-on assistance during labor and delivery, and postpartum support

• Minimizing technological interventions

• Identifying and referring clients who require obstetrical attention

We focus on personalized care, non-bias evidence-based practices, and encourage informed consent discussions, and shared decision-making. We are here to respectfully give information that assists YOU in making the decisions that are right for you, your family and your baby. 

Most healthy pregnant people are considered low-risk and can safely birth their babies outside of the hospital. Additionally, one of a midwife’s most important tasks is screening and monitoring their clients to ensure that only low-risk pregnancies are birthed at home. However, only doctors and midwives have the training to determine if you’re a good candidate, so be sure to consult with us or another licensed practitioner for the safety of you and your baby.

Our routine visit schedule is as follows, with additional visits scheduled as needed and ultrasounds as needed:

Prenatal Care

• 0-28 weeks: every 4 weeks

• 28-37 weeks: every 2 weeks

• 37-42 weeks: weekly until birth

Postpartum Care

• Home visit approximately 24-36 hours after birth

• Additional postpartum visits 2 weeks and 6 weeks

We offer all standard prenatal lab testing, and can refer out to other providers and specialists as needed (for example, in the case of ultrasounds). Typically, we are coming to our clients’ homes for any lab work, blood draws, etc. and we send in the labs ourselves to Quest Diagnostics.

Nope! Midwives are Primary Care Providers for the normal prenatal, labor/birth, and postpartum period and can also provide referrals as needed. Our prenatal care includes all the same clinical components as obstetric care, such as listening to the baby with a doppler or fetoscope and taking your blood pressure, but includes about 45 minutes beyond the clinical monitoring that is filled with getting to know you and your health, and addressing all of your questions. Postpartum care also includes in home visits, and we do well-care for your newborn for the first six weeks. You do not need a physician involved in your care unless a complication arises, in which case we can refer you for consultation, concurrent care, or a transfer of care. However, you are welcome to have concurrent care with an OB/GYN if you choose!

A midwife, just like a doctor, is a medical health professional whose responsibility is the health and safety of the birthing person and baby. On the other hand, a doula is focused primarily on the comfort and well-being of the whole family, which is often in the form of physical and emotional support during labor. Midwives and doulas together make a great team and many people choose to have both. We highly recommend having a doula at your birth.

We take HSA and FSA, and we offer a superbill and global bill if clients would like to try to get reimbursed by their insurance.

Absolutely! This is available to anyone who requests it. We also take personal checks, direct deposit, and electronic payments.

Yes; many of our clients choose water birth, and it is a great way to cope with labor! The birth tub and birth kit is included in the cost. Click on the link to learn more about the evidence surrounding water birth.

We bring monitoring equipment for you and the baby, which includes a handheld fetal doppler and vital signs equipment, resuscitation equipment, antihemorrhagic drugs and other medications for rare emergencies, supplies for the newborn exam, suturing equipment, herbs, and other various supplies. We are also certified in Neonatal Resuscitation (NRP) and Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers (BLS). 

Yes! We will file the mother’s worksheet so you can get a ssn card for your baby. We will also do all the paperwork for vital records so the baby’s birth certificate is mailed to you.

Yes! We typically come to the clients home postpartum, within 24-36 hours and offer the test then, and again at the other postpartum visits as needed. We will file the results for the state.