If you are pregnant and looking to hire a midwife, you probably are wondering if you can ask questions before making a decision.
The answer is: Yes! You can! Any midwife worth their salt will be happy to answer your questions to make sure they are a good fit.
So, if you are wondering what to ask, beyond the basics, here are some questions to consider. Read on:
Experience
If you are hiring a midwife, you probably want to know about their experience, training and certifications. These are all excellent things to ask. How long have you been practicing? How many deliveries have you attended? Where did you receive training? Where is your certification or licensing from?
Your due date
If you are considering a home birth with a midwife, it’s a good idea to make sure the person you are considering has a plan for being at your birth – or has a backup available. Make sure to ask about how your midwife can be reached and who else can attend your birth if they are unavailable.
Hospitals and emergencies
Birth emergencies do happen, so it’s best to ask if your midwife has hospital admission privileges at the closest hospital to your house (if you are considering a home birth!). It’s also a good idea to get a sense of how your midwife handles emergencies and if they have experience with difficult labors or births and what the plan is if something should go wrong.
Pre- and postnatal care
You’ll likely want to see your midwife for prenatal care and visits, so it’s a good idea to ask how that is handled and how much time you’ll have at visits. Pregnancy is also a time where you might have a lot of questions, so it’s a good idea to find out how your midwife responds to afterhours issues or concerns.
Many midwives do postpartum care too, so if you want that, it is a good idea to find out what is offered and also, how your midwife can provide care and even nursing support.
Everything Birth
At Everything Birth, we support pregnant people and midwives alike!