Nothing could be more encouraging than to hear that women around the country are opting for the prenatal care they desire and deserve! An article released today stated that out of hospitals births are at a 37-year high and that “U.S. birthing centers increased from 170 in 2004, to nearly 2,050 in early 2013.”

For me, as a midwife, I love the feeling of a birth center. Although I offer homebirth in my practice, I mostly offer homebirth because I don’t have a birth center! I have worked in birth centers in Pennsylvania and it felt like I was having a homebirth at MY house. In my own space, I am calm and my calm will fill the space allowing the laboring woman to relax and progress. In the birth center I am not compelled to follow the rigid standards of a hospital but I am following the very safe standards set forth by the American Association of Birth Centers (AABC).

The Midwives of New Jersey are moving forward in our efforts to establish birth center care in New Jersey. Our clients are now able to labor naturally within Morristown Medical Center. They can move freely without continuous fetal monitoring, eat and drink, bring their children and take their time progressing through labor. We provide continuous labor support. Jacuzzi tubs are available for labor and birth. After the birth, babies are left skin to skin uninterrupted for as long as the mother desires. The family can recuperate after the birth in a comfortable room with a queen bed until they go home in 12-24 hours. We offer the follow-up care in our very comfortable office, giving mom and baby the attention they need and getting required testing done.

Birth centers allows midwifery to thrive and thriving midwifery provides best care for pregnancy and birth. I hope to see this model of care become common in New Jersey.

To learn more about the Midwives of New Jersey’s philosophy of care click here