EIRMC now allows certified nurse midwives to deliver babies
Women wishing to give birth at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls now have a few more options when choosing who delivers their baby. Certified nurse midwives are now approved to deliver babies at EIRMC.
There are three types of midwives: lay midwives, certified midwives and certified nurse midwives.
Certified nurse midwives have more advanced training and education than the first two types.
“They help them through the whole labor process,” said Iris Torvik, administrative director for Women and Children Services at EIRMC. “They’re hands on, much more hands on, stay throughout the labor process with the woman coaching, trying different laboring techniques, different pain management techniques, relaxation.”
Certified nurse midwives give the mother more one-on-one time than she would get with a doctor.
“Some women really need assistance through their labor from the early phases clear through the end,” said Natalie Taylor, a certified midwife. “Some women do better without having someone right there by their side. In that case we would still be available and close by, just check in periodically. Some women need our assistance to get through every contraction and it really depends on what the woman’s needs are.”
There are many common misconceptions surrounding certified nurse midwives, including that they deliver babies at home.
“Certified nurse midwives in our practice and at the hospitals only deliver at the hospitals,” Taylor said. “There’s misconception that with the certified nurse midwife you can’t have medications when you’re in labor and that is not true either. We have, lots of our patients have epidurals.”
Having a certified nurse midwife deliver in a hospital allows the mother to have her own birth experience while having the hospital as a safety net incase something goes wrong.
“We want women to feel like they have the most natural, home-like environment, but yet, it’s the just in case,” Torvik said. “Just in case something changes for mom or baby, we have the hospital technology and skills to handle the just in case.”
Mountain View Hospital in Idaho Falls, Madison Memorial Hospital in Rexburg, Bingham Memorial Hospital in Blackfoot and Portneuf Medical Center in Pocatello also allow certified nurse midwives.
