Midwifery School in Vermont - VT

Midwifery has been an integral component of the healthcare system since the dawn of human history.  The philosophy of midwifery is based on the belief that pregnancy and giving birth are normal life experiences.  While more traditional healthcare models treat pregnancy as a sickness, a “condition,�? or a pathological affliction, midwifery treats pregnancy as a natural and routine process.  Midwives provide prenatal monitoring, care, and counseling, as well as hands-on support and assistance during labor and the delivery of the baby.  In addition, midwives offer support and counseling to postpartum mothers and provide education and assistance to them as they begin to care for their newborns.  The goal of midwifery is to reduce medical interventions into the natural processes of labor and delivery and to reduce the incidence of caesarean sections and other injuries and traumas related to childbirth.

In Vermont, midwives are authorized to practice either as Certified Nurse Midwives or Certified Professional Midwives.  A Certified Nurse-Midwife takes general training courses in nursing, as well as specialized courses in midwifery.  Because a nurse-midwife is qualified to work as nurse in addition to working as a midwife, this career path provides a greater range of professional opportunities and enables the nurse-midwife to work in a wider range of healthcare facilities.
Certified Nurse-Midwives will find exciting professional opportunities available at many of the state’s finest medical institutions, including Southwestern Vermont Health Care in Bennington, Rutland Regional Medical Center in Rutland, Fletcher Allen Health Care-Medical Center Campus in Burlington, and Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin.

A Certified Professional Midwife, on the other hand, does not attend nursing but is instead a professional independent midwifery practitioner who meets the certification standards set forth by the North American Registry of Midwives.  The credentialing standards for Certified Professional Midwives require knowledge and skill in providing care in out-of-hospital settings.