A Career in Midwifery

A midwife is a trained, health-care professional, who offers government-funded primary care to people with low-risk pregnancies and their newborns. They are responsible for the complete care of pregnant persons and their newborns through pregnancy, labour, birth and the first six weeks after birth. They deliver babies in hospitals, as well as in birth centres and home settings. Midwives can provide care without the involvement of any other health professional, however, there are times when a midwife has the opportunity to collaborate with other health care providers such as physicians, nurses, and social workers.

A career in midwifery allows one to challenge themselves both physically and mentally. Midwives must be able to make knowledgeable, clinical decisions in their regular practice, and in stressful or emergencies situations. In addition, good communication and counselling skills are essential to working with fellow care providers, clients, and their families.

Midwives work in community-based group practices with a team of other midwives, collectively providing care to clients 24 hours a day. There is a lot of variety from practice to practice in the ways call schedules are managed, but balancing quality of care and a midwife’s work/life balance are important considerations in making these schedules.

The Benefits of a Career in Midwifery

Midwives are in extremely high demand, due in part to the relationship-based, client-centred care that they are privileged to offer. Because midwives are able to provide complete care throughout pregnancy, labour, birth, and the first six weeks following birth, they are able to build strong relationships with their clients. These relationships enable midwives to deliver personalized, responsive care, helping to minimize client fears, and allowing clients to feel respected and empowered during one of the most significant periods of their lives.

Midwifery is a rewarding and exciting career that is ever changing and expanding. In addition to standard pregnancy and postpartum (after birth) care, some midwives have been able to expand their scope of practice into specialized areas of lactation services, contraception (IUDs), medication abortions, postpartum depression support, hospitalist midwifery and perinatal care programs. Many midwives also choose to work for universities, helping teach future midwives and/or contributing to important research related to their profession. Furthermore, because of the midwifery care model and the funding in Ontario that allows midwives to provide care to uninsured pregnant persons, they have a unique opportunity to serve populations who have historically not had good access to care. Some midwives choose to prioritize their client care to pregnant people who are uninsured, refugees, Indigenous, adolescents, incarcerated, housing insecure, as well as members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. The uniqueness of the midwifery care model allows midwives to build rewarding relationships with clients as they move through one of the most transformative experiences in life.

Regulatory and Professional Bodies

The program recommends that students enroll with the College of Midwives of Ontario (subscriber status) and join the Association of Ontario Midwives as a student member.

The College of Midwives of Ontario regulates the practice of Midwifery in Ontario under the Midwifery Act, 1991 and the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991. The College of Midwives has approved a set of core competencies for entry to practice which guides the Midwifery Education Program’s curriculum. Regulations under the Ministry Act set out the following for registration:  attendance at a minimum of 60 births, of which the student must be involved as a primary caregiver for 40; 30 must include care throughout pregnancy, labour and the postpartum period, a minimum of 10 in a home setting and a minimum of 10 in a hospital setting. Regulatory requirements are subject to change from time to time.

The Midwifery Education Program prepares students to meet Canadian entry to practice requirements for the profession and maintains a close working relationship with the regulatory body so that students obtain the required competencies and clinical experiences to be eligible for registration. Graduation from the Midwifery Education Program does not guarantee registration with the College of Midwives of Ontario. All applicants to the College must meet additional registration requirements. New graduates are required to work in an established practice for their first year of registration.