Certified Nurse Midwives Offer a Holistic Approach to Childbirth

Skagit Regional Health’s uniquely trained and certified nurse midwives are professional health care providers who specialize in women’s health. They provide expert pregnancy and childbirth care, as well as routine health care for women of all ages.

Midwives focus on a holistic approach, spending extra time on education, nutrition and support for both mother and baby. With you through active labor to delivery, our team promotes a more natural progression with medical interventions only when necessary. Midwives care for low and moderate risk pregnancies and can potentially co-manage higher risk patients with one of our medical doctors.

What is a Midwife?

The word midwife means “with woman.” At Skagit Regional Health, we believe that pregnancy and giving birth is a normal and beautiful part of life. We offer guidance and education during pregnancy and the birthing process, so that women can make well-informed decisions. We believe that all women should have a voice in their care.

Helping Women of All Ages Enhance Health and Wellness

Our midwife team has the skill to help women through every step of the journey to health and wellness. No matter the age or life stage, we address the needs women have to keep them healthy their entire life. Together, we formulate a personalized plan for general health and wellness that may include lifestyle changes such as a healthier diet or more effective exercise. An average visit with a certified nurse midwife is generally 30 minutes to 1 hour. We see every age, as all women have many questions about their ever-changing body.

Certified nurse midwives offer the following well-woman services:

  • Birth control
  • Breast exams
  • Hormone therapy
  • Irregular bleeding issues
  • Pap smears
  • STI and infection checks
  • Well-woman visits/Annual exams

Labor, Delivery and Postpartum Services Focus on Natural Methods

Midwives care for low- and moderate-risk pregnancies and can potentially co-manage higher-risk patients in partnership with board-certified physicians at Skagit Regional Health. Your midwife will be with you in active labor through delivery, promoting natural progression with medical interventions only when necessary. Midwives generally promote the following services during labor and delivery:

  • Allowing laboring mothers to walk and move around
  • Breastfeeding support
  • Intermittent listening to the baby without being secured to a monitor
  • Letting laboring moms wear their own clothes
  • Low lighting in the labor and delivery room
  • No IV poles
  • Offering pain medication or epidural
  • Offering tub options for labor relief
  • Providing postpartum care

Post-Delivery Lactation Counselor Provides Breastfeeding Support

Skagit Regional Health provides a certified lactation counselor to help women with breastfeeding support before they leave the hospital with their newborn. We encourage skin-to-skin bonding between newborn and mom, which helps with successful breastfeeding. After leaving the hospital, we see mom and newborn again at two weeks and six weeks. We carefully monitor for postpartum depression, feeding issues and how well the mom is coping with her new role.

For More Information About Midwifery Services

If you would like to consider midwifery services for your care, including labor and delivery, contact one of our midwife team members at Skagit Regional Health. We look forward to helping you understand the holistic options for care of women of all ages.