Dear Families,

I am here to address a very common question that I am often asked. “Why should I choose to have my baby at a free-standing birth center with a midwife?” The answer is both simple and complex. For heathy, low risk women and babies’ outcomes are improved when cared for by Midwives. A free-standing birth center is the natural home for midwives and so the combination only serves to facilitate these outcomes. Does this mean that physicians and hospitals are bad or offer subpar care? No, it does not. It is crucial that all midwives work in close collaboration with our physician colleagues and in a framework that allows for transfer to hospitals when necessary. This is why I am proud to be working in partnership with Women’s Health Group to build this new exciting option for birth in this community. Seasons Midwifery & Birth Center is being brought to you by a dedicated team of both midwives and physicians working together to offer this safe and effective care model to the families in our community.

One hallmark of midwifery care is Evidence Based Care, so please do not take my word alone on these improved outcomes. I will share several links with excellent, evidence-based information about Midwives and Birth Centers. I invite you to read through them to help build an understanding of the work that we do.

• The Midwifery Model of Care is described in depth here https://www.midwife.org/Our-Philosophy-of-Care
• The Lancet, is a peer reviewed general medical journal and is one of the oldest and most respected journals in publication. They recently published a series on the power and importance of Midwifery. You can read the entire series here https://www.thelancet.com/series/midwifery
• The American Association of Birth Centers, is a national organization that has been crucial to the study and gathering of data on the safety of free standing birth centers for decades. They have published two, excellent peer reviewed studies on these outcomes. You can read about the latest one here https://www.birthcenters.org/page/NBCSII

As a Midwife, I believe in physiologic birth and that birth must be respected. I believe that a healthy woman, when supported and nurtured, will likely remain healthy throughout her pregnancy, labor and birth. And that this pregnant person will grow a healthy baby that is designed to navigate the birth process.  For these families, health is my assumption. I will closely watch and monitor their progress and intervene when necessary. I am a partner with my clients, on equal footing, but I also have years of training and knowledge that I can and will utilize to help educate and guide them. I believe that Peace on Earth Truly Does Begin With Birth and this is why I choose to practice in the setting of a free-standing birth center. All of the Midwives here at Seasons Midwifery & Birth Center share this philosophy and dedication to serving our families.

I am happy to share these thoughts and resources with you as you research your birthing options. I hope that you find them helpful. Additionally, we are happy to have more discussion and one on one time with you as our clinic opens and we offer tours and orientations free to the community. Please stay tuned to our website and social media outlets for more news and updates on our timing.

Yours Sincerely,

Aubre Tompkins, CNM  Director of Midwifery at Seasons Midwifery & Birth Center