An Inside Look at the PAC Reception

by Heather Bradford, CNM, ARNP
Chair, ACNM Government Affairs Committee

While at the Annual Meeting, I had the distinct honor of introducing US Representative Jim McDermott (D-WA) as the keynote speaker at the Midwives-PAC Reception on Sunday night at the Seattle Convention Center. He was welcomed by a roaring crowd of over 60 midwives and 100 nurse-midwifery students who, with standing room only, were chomping at the bit to discuss health care reform and how midwives are part of the solution. Rep. McDermott is a senior member of the U.S. House of Representatives and a psychiatrist known for advocating for affordable access to health care coverage. Since 1993, he has introduced universal health care legislation in every Congress, and is again leading the way in drafting comprehensive health care reform legislation with recommendations for a robust public option provision.

There were several highlights to his speech. When he used the phrase, equal pay for equal services, we all cheered and clapped, as we are once again advocating for equitable reimbursement with respect to Medicare Part B services with our Midwifery Care Access and Reimbursement Equity Act of 2009 (HR. 1101/S. 662), and trying to encourage Rep. McDermott to cosponsor our bill. It was refreshing to hear him talk about the value of having varying types of providers provide health care so patients have choices, and his history of supporting midwifery in WA when he served as a state legislator.

The other highlight of the night was his encouragement for us to teach our legislators about midwives. There was a real “aha” moment, especially among the students, when he essentially said that if you don’t contact your legislators and let them know about your profession, they won’t know about you and will never be able to stand up for you. But if you do your part and advocate for yourself, you can really make a difference. As Chair of the Government Affairs Committee, this was music to my ears. Often I find many midwives only want to deliver babies and leave the grassroots lobbying to a select few. But unfortunately we can’t do it alone! Thank you, Rep. McDermott, for inspiring a room of over 160 to get in touch with our legislators and speak out.

So at the end of the night I was able to walk the Congressman and his staff out. We discussed how HR 1101/S. 662, our equitable reimbursement bill, is a reimbursement bill (which follows his agreement that equal services deserve equal pay), that ACOG was supportive of midwives receiving 100% under Medicare, and that the bill had been scored by the Congressional Budget Office at zero (meaning it wouldn’t cost the government a dime). And with those words I proceeded to the bar to order a glass of wine to toast with my colleagues a successful event. Because that is what the Midwives-PAC is all about – access to legislators. By soliciting dollars from ACNM members, the Midwives-PAC facilitates the direct exchange of information between members of Congress and midwives and gives us the opportunity to speak out about our profession and our health care policy agenda.

Stories from Seattle

by Ann Darlington, CNM

I live in Seattle and want to share an unexpected convention highlight that came for me in a yellow cab. Late one night after convention-style celebrating, two friends and I took a taxi back to their hotel. Our driver was a quiet, pleasant Somali man who listened to us midwives jabbering about the convention. As my friend Mary Lou reached to hand him the cab fare, he took her hand, drew it to his heart, and patted their joined hands against his chest three times (an unusual and moving gesture for a man from his world). He told her that he loves midwives, because they take such good care of his wife and family. When she joined us on the steps to the lobby, she shared this with us with tears in her eyes. A light went off for me—Muslim man, works nights, wife sees local midwives—so I scurried back to the cab, introduced myself, and asked what clinic his wife attends. As I had guessed, his wife has had her babies with my NeighborCare practice. Small world!

Another small world story: The Local Host Committee midwives had two beautiful handmade quilts to raffle off at our hospitality booth. The mothers of two different Seattle midwives made and donated the quilts to help raise money to defray our convention costs. When I was working the booth, a midwife from Ohio named Marsha Atkins totally fell for one of the quilts. Marsha asked how in the world she could win this precious work of art—she just had to have it. Naturally (and logically) I suggested she buy more tickets, so she did—an arm's length. She stroked the tickets with a prayer and a blessing, a “c’mon baby, come back to mama” and carefully laid them into the ticket collection basket.

The next day the raffle tickets were drawn, and Marsha Atkins won! She was ecstatic—whooping and smiling and crying. (Girl got mojo.) It turns out that 15 years ago, Marsha attended the birth of another Seattle midwife, Mary-Paul Backman, when Mary-Paul was active duty Navy at Bethesda and Marsha was active duty Air Force at Georgetown. As Mary-Paul tells it, Marsha “took over my prenatal care as a favor to a mutual friend who felt I needed someone strong-willed to get me to take better care of myself during my pregnancy….Believe me, I met my match in Marsha. My husband and I were both active duty and busy and she reminded us that we would only get the one chance to do that pregnancy ‘right.’ Watching her teach the OB residents on L&D was part of what inspired me to be a midwife. There was such a difference in how midwives taught and the OBs taught.”

A couple of lessons for and by midwives: what goes around, comes around, and we are but one or two separations from each other. Midwives share a small and beautiful world.

Seattle Delivered; What's Next?

by Melissa Avery, CNM, PhD, FACNM, FAAN
President of the American College of Nurse-Midwives

The 54th Annual Meeting of the American College of Nurse-Midwives was indeed an exciting gathering that resulted in an outpouring of enthusiasm from midwives, other women’s health experts, and our corporate partners alike. Two particular highlights for me were the purple bus advertisements for midwifery and the winning student video.

The ACNM Washington State Chapter was a fabulous local host group! To promote midwifery, the chapter worked with Titan Outdoors to design and purchase several large ad wraps, which were displayed on Seattle city buses. The women and babies featured on the ads are actual midwife clients.














The Why I Am Becoming a Midwife video contest had several excellent entries; the winning entry from the Columbia University students was truly inspirational.


Building on the momentum from the Seattle meeting, I’m already looking forward to the 55th Annual Meeting, which will take place in Washington, DC in June 2010. What an exciting time it will be to meet in the nation’s capitol. I encourage you to join me. As stated on the buttons distributed at the ACNM business meetings in Seattle, “I am a midwife—the future is in my hands.”

Seattle, Here We Come!

It’s time for midwives and their fans to start getting excited about the ACNM 54th Annual Meeting & Exposition. This special annual event is geared toward midwives and other women’s health experts, but also includes free activities for anyone interested in midwifery and women’s health. Here’s what you can look forward to:

Become a Midwife Forum
If you’re interested in a career in women’s health, visit the Washington State Convention & Trade Center for a free, interactive career event on Saturday, May 23, noon – 3 pm. Meet practicing midwives, interact with student midwives, and experiment with birth simulators, pelvic models, and more.


Celebrate Midwifery Party
If you already went to midwifery school, show your school spirit at the Celebrate Midwifery Party, Monday, May 25, 8 pm – midnight. The school that shows the most spirit will win a free student registration to the 55th ACNM Annual Meeting in Washington, DC. Start celebrating now by submitting song requests to ylandon@acnm.org. Include your name, school, and requested song. You may also dedicate the song to a particular person or class.
This event is open to registered meeting attendees only.


Tuesday Night at the Movies
Come to the Sheraton Seattle Hotel, Metropolitan Ballroom A, Tuesday, May 26, 7:30 pm – 10:30 pm for free admission to two pregnancy and birth films: Home Delivery and Laboring Under an Illusion: Portrayal of Childbirth in the Mass Media.