Letter to the Members of the North Carolina House Select Committee on Licensing Midwives

North Carolina is working on legislation to legalize Certified Practicing Midwives. Following is a letter I wrote to members of the committee on licensing midwives. I also sent copies to my local legislators.

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(Some identifying information omitted from letter.)

During my oldest daughter’s hospital birth we both suffered iatrogenic complications and I was given medication without my knowledge or consent.

Because of the negative aspects of my oldest daughter’s birth, we wanted to avoid a similar experience and decided to have our youngest daughter at home with the help of a direct entry midwife. The care given by my midwife while I was pregnant with our youngest far surpassed the level of care during my pregnancy with our oldest. Instead of fifteen minute prenatal appointments preceded by an hour or more in the waiting room, I had hour long prenatal appointments with no wait time at all. Instead of one prenatal appointment with the actual obstetrician we’d hired (most office visits were conducted by nurses employed by the obstetrician), I saw the same health care provider at all appointments. Instead of a complete stranger in the delivery room (the obstetrician we’d hired was out of town & a colleague stood in for her), we were surrounded by familiar faces in our own home.

I’m sure you’re aware that military families move a lot. Out of the five states I’ve lived in (Washington, Oregon, California, Florida, and North Carolina), North Carolina is the only one that does not license direct entry midwives.

Certified Practicing Midwives provide better service at lower cost; please allow North Carolinians access to this model of maternity care.

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Get involved!
-join North Carolina Friends of Midwives
-write your legislators
-tell your friends

Visit The Big Push for Midwives to see where your state stands on CPM licensure.