Midwifery in the U.S.

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the history and practice of midwifery in the U.S. in an effort to determine the impact of midwifery on the development of the professional nursing profession. The author points out that more affluent consumers realize the benefits of the personalized, holistic health care that the modern-day midwives have to offer; birthing centers are opening, which offering prenatal counseling, extensive personal care during birth, and close collaboration with physicians. The paper reports that midwives establish independent birth centers, deliver babies in homes and in hospitals, work in women's health care practices, and are midwife-educators and public health policy makers.

From the Paper:

"The Children's Bureau, the first American organization to focus specifically on the welfare of children, published its first report with appalling statistics: 124 babies per 1,000 were dying, and the maternal mortality rates were as high (Rooks, 1997). Recognizing the importance of prenatal care, a plan was developed to combat the poor pregnancy outcomes that included providing public health nurses for prenatal instruction. In response, a group of obstetricians, nurses and mothers founded the Maternity Center Association (MCA) in New York to address the problem of poor pregnancy outcomes and improve the health of mothers and infants."

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