What is a Midwife?
A midwife provides the mother-to-be and her family with highly personalized attention, education, counseling and obstetric care throughout pregnancy, labor, delivery and recovery. Viewing non-complicated childbirth as a natural, healthy process, midwives encourage patients to trust their instincts and to let nature take its course, focusing attention on the mother-to-be. Midwives support women to be active decision-makers and partners in their care.
Personal and Attentive Care through Pregnancy, Birth, Delivery & Beyond
Many women choose a midwife as an alternative to an OB/GYN physician or family doctor because of the personalized, attentive maternity care offered. Regular appointments with the Midwives Clinic at Valley Medical Center include generous time for questions, learning about your pregnancy, monitoring your health and baby’s growth and assistance in creating a personalized birth plan.
All midwives at VMC are Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioners (ARNPs) specializing in pregnancy and
well-women’s healthcare. All VMC midwives hold master’s degrees and are Members of the American College of Nurse-Midwives. (For more information about nurse-midwives, visit mymidwife.org.)
A Nurturing, Supportive Place
VMC’s midwives offer options to help you through the work of labor, including soothing baths, relaxing music, massage and medications.
Our Birth Center offers family-centered care in your own private suite for labor, birth and recovery,
surrounded by family and friends of your choosing. Each room has a whirlpool bath, flat-screen TV, free on-demand movies, wireless Internet access, DVD/CD player, room service meals and a daybed, so family members can also stay in comfort.
Birth and Delivery
Women receiving care from our midwives take great comfort in knowing that a nurse-midwife will support them from early labor through delivery. When appropriate, midwives can recommend ultrasound, amniocentesis and other procedures and refer mothers-to-be to specialists and surgeons. For the peace of mind and safety of our patients, an obstetric specialist is on duty at all times at The Birth Center, ensuring a physician is always available to provide additional care and access to technology in the unlikely event of an obstetric emergency. For fragile babies and those born with complications, The Birth Center has a state-of-the art Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Services
Women often choose nurse-midwives because of the highly personalized level of care offered through all stages of pregnancy and birth.
- Preconception care
- Prenatal care
- Childbirth
- Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC)
- Postpartum care
- Birth control
- Annual physical exams
Learn More
Visit valleymed.org/midwives
