So happy to see this study and the article!!! It's long overdue. Read on below for an excerpt, and click on the link to read the full text, explaining the benefits of a midwife, the research, and the politics.
A Larger Role for Midwives Could Improve Deficient U.S. Care for Mothers and Babies
by Nina Martin, Feb. 22, 2018
According to a new study, states that give midwives a greater role in patient care achieve better results on key measures of maternal and neonatal health.
Now a groundbreaking study, the first systematic look at what midwives can and can’t do in the states where they practice, offers new evidence that empowering them could significantly boost maternal and infant health. The five-year effort by researchers in Canada and the U.S., published Wednesday, found that states that have done the most to integrate midwives into their health care systems, including Washington, New Mexico and Oregon, have some of the best outcomes for mothers and babies. Conversely, states with some of the most restrictive midwife laws and practices — including Alabama, Ohio and Mississippi — tend to do significantly worse on key indicators of maternal and neonatal well-being.
“We have been able to establish that midwifery care is strongly associated with lower interventions, cost-effectiveness and improved outcomes,” said lead researcher Saraswathi Vedam, an associate professor of midwifery who heads the Birth Place Lab at the University of British Columbia.
Read the full article here: https://www.propublica.org/article/midwives-study-maternal-neonatal-care