For Cigna patients we have good news - We've landed a facility contract! This reduces your client responsibility for the MMC facility fee. We're shooting for an effective date of April 1st. We signed and mailed yesterday so it should be back soon.

We may still need to get in-network authorizations for some plans with exclusions against independent nurse-midwives.

 All the best - Joel

Joel here, and I'm just writing to share what cool men's group meeting we had Friday night. Mark Lafleur lead us through a number of topics and the guys were really positive. I was the oldest dad with the oldest kids, but I know I still learned something.

I made some notes on what we talked about...

- What are your hopes and fears regarding having a baby?

- What ways do you support your wife now? How will you support her after the baby is born?

- Self Care; What ways do your wives care for themselves now? How do you care for yourself (charge your batteries) now? How will you do these after baby is born?

- How do kids escalate (or elevate) stress on the marriage?

- Love languages, personality types and real quality time

- How might the sexual relationship change? How to make time for each other.

- What are ways you "check out" in an unhealthy way? What are signs you need help?

Books we discussed: The Five Love Languages, And Baby Makes Three

It was  a really positive meeting and I think we all got a lot out of it. Many thanks to Mark for leading us through a big list in a short period of time (about 2 hours) without rushing through it.

Our next Men's Group meeting is Friday, Feb 19th. Snacks and stuff at 6:30, program to start at 7 pm.

At our first meeting of "Men Who Prefer Midwives," I asked for suggested topics for the next meeting. Here's the responses:

• “How to help keep wife sane if she is a stay-at-home mom”
• “How to keep your relationship healthy while you’re raising your kids”
• “Bonding with your baby”
• “How can we get started with infant sign language?”
• “Juggling work and parenthood”

With that list, I decided to find a speaker to address topics 1, 2 & 5 that all seemed similar. Mark Lafleur will be leading our discussion of "Keeping Life Sane after Baby is Born." We'll be discussing the kinds of issues that come up after birth and some practical strategies and steps to respond.

 Feel free to email Joel with any questions. See you there!

The folks from Power of Two visited us. For those expecting Your first babe, there may be cash for taking the program. If not a first babe expecting couple, it can still be a great program. It's well vetted and researched.

 Learn more at www.poweroftwo.org 

Our Due Dates spreadsheet shows that we have reached our limit for April, so moms who call w/ April Due Dates are now being put on a wait-list. To be on our wait list for April, we will need your name, phone number, and due date. We also will ask that you complete a natural childbirth class by 36 weeks gestation.

Many thanks for your understanding :)

Hi. This is Laura Hess writing...

I feel so lucky to be a part of the Mountain Midwifery team! When I was deciding where to do my Doctorate of Nursing Practice project, I could not think of a better place. There is a big push nationally regarding the right amount of weight gain in pregnancy. Women who start off with a BMI that is normal, between 19.8 and 24.9, should gain about 25-35 pounds during pregnancy. Women who start off their pregnancy at a lower BMI should gain about 28-40lbs. Women who have a BMI between 25 and 30 should gain about 15-25 pounds. Women with a BMI over 30 should gain no more than 10-15 lbs.

For years, women have been told to eat for two. We are finding more and more that gaining too much weight in pregnancy leads to a risk of longer labor, larger babies, C-Section, instrumented delivery (vacuum, forceps) etc. Weight gain during pregnancy can also increase your risk of developing high blood pressure or diabetes. The new thought about weight gain is that less can actually be more, depending on where you started out.

This is just a short note to brag on and encourage our Mountain Midwifery Mamas group. We call it a postpartum group because it's intended to provide the moms and babies all kinds of support and our group, lead by Amy Swagman, does a wonderful job helping each other out.

Grrr. I tried 3 different ways to include a photo with this blog post, but no luck. Please use your imagination to see 15 beautiful mamas and their 15+ babies - I'm too lazy to count all the babies :)

 If you'd like to join the group or would like more info, please email amy@birthingbody.org

 

Mountain Midwifery Center is growing, but we need to grow faster. We would love to serve more Colorado families, AND we'd love to be able to hire all the wonderful nurses who grow into midwives. We just took Gina off our About Us page because she's all grown up and landed a job with the Boulder Nurse Midwives. Gina's not our first student nurse midwife to graduate, but she's been with us so long :(

You go with our blessings Gina. Best wishes to you and the beabies and

To our clients who desire the H1N1 Vaccine and/or Seasonal Flu Vaccine.

CDC website for general information in pregnancy:  http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/pregnancy/ 

 

Find a H1N1/Flu Clinic:  http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/epr/h1n1.html 

 

Dr. Jen Englad from Pediatrics at Stapleton Plaza is offering H1N1 vaccinations to pregnant women for $14.00.  Call 303-388-4333 to make an appointment.

Address: 3401 Quebec Street, Suite 3900.

 

Finally, ask your Family Physician or Primary Care Provider for availability.

We are very encouraged by the wonderful video by Sonya Doctorian and Colorado Public News. We had no editorial control over the video, but we couldn't be more pleased. If you're considering MMC, this short film (9 minutes) does a great job explaining who we are. If your spouse or partner is interested in us but you find out-of-hospital birth to be a strange idea, please consider what you see here.

http://www.kbdi.org/news/index.php/2009/09/04/video-a-lower-cost-alternative-to-traditional-hospital-childbirth

Read on to learn more about the film...

Last week we celebrated our 500th birth in the center. The entire press release is below.

Please help us get the word out and share with your organization, insurer, politician, union, friends and family...

Tracy and I know what it is to see a vaccine reaction first hand. Our son had a classic reaction to a vaccine given at two months of age. From that scary experience, we learned to become more informed about all vaccines and we follow what most would call an alternate and delayed schedule, and we try to personalize it for every member of the family. When Tracy saw Karla's write-up on her family's personal experience with H1N1, she thought it might be good to share because of some of the fear mongering in our media.

Our first meeting of "Men Who Prefer Midwives" is Friday, Dec 11th at 7pm.

Tom King (hubby to Heather T, an MMC dad and a really nice guy) will be teaching us about babywearing for guys (slings and such). I'll see if we can get in some baby backpacks too.

We'll have some snacks and beverages. Feel free to bring your favorite refreshment. We'll have the run of the courtyard, so cigar guys can do that. 

 There should be an Evite going out soon, but if you don't get one by November 17, feel free to call or email for RSVP - 303.788.0600 - joel@mountainmidwifery.com

Here's a link to a great article about the role of midwives in Afghanistan that is improving maternal and infant health, as well as the cultural status of women in general. Please consider giving to the organizations listed in the article: Terre des Hommes (http://www.terredeshommes.org/) and the Afghan Midwives Association (http://www.internationalmidwives.org/AboutICM/MemberAssociations/AfghanMidwivesAssociation/tabid/382/Default.aspx)

Looking at all the good these midwives do in Afghanistan, isn't it a shame our country persecutes them in so many of our states? -Joel

After my son's soccer game in Frisco, we headed to Breckenridge for a walk and a burger.  On the the big screen TVs, football and 9 News blarred so we watched the beautiful sunset over the ski runs.  When I turned around and saw Nancy Pelosi beaming from the screen, I knew the vote for the House Democratic Bill,  the Affordable Health Care for America Act, had passed.  I stood up and went closer to the TVs and watched the news report of the proceedings.  I swollowed hard as the pressure of tears started to build.  "The first step," I thought.  The first step to providing care for all.  The first step to providing birth center across Colorado.  The first step to having all insurance companies, including Medicaid, pay for birth center care.  The first step to making midwifery and birth center care the model that all women have access to. 

Like most of our familiies at the birth center, my own family has much invested in healthcare reform.  As a woman and mother, I am angry that I pay more in premiums than a male smoker, just because I can get pregnant.  I am angry that my son's chronic cough might be diagnosed as asthma, thus rendering him uninsurable, even though he can run a 22 minute 5K.   As a business owner, I am angry that I can't afford to offer my employees full maternity coverage without bankrupting the business.  I get angy when our clients come in and tell us their stories of $10,000 deductibles or no maternity coverage because it's a pre-existing condition.   

By popular demand, we are starting a men's group. We'll be sending out an Evite to emails we have on file. If interested and you don't receive an email by 11/10/09, please email questions@mountainmidwifery.com and we'll add you to the list.

Initial plan is to meet once a month, to have a speaker and some time for sharing and hanging out. We'll meet in the education room. I hope to have topics alternate monthly from newborns to toddlers to boys. I forsee us talking about women too, but we can keep those topics covert :)  (They know too much already.)

First topic night is tentatively scheduled for mid-December.

If you're interested in being a speaker, please email me at joel@mountainmidwifery.com  

See you there, Joel 

 

for Thurs, 10/29, we are closing the office and rescheduling all appointments.  

on Weds, 10/28, MMC will be open for our appointments before our lunch break at 1. We intend to reschedule our appointments starting at 2 or later.

If you have an appointment starting before 1, we should be able to complete it. If you live over a pass or far out, you should consider rescheduling. 

If you have an afternoon appointment, feel free to call in to reschedule.

Feel free to call with any questions -Joel

From our good friend Lynn... in relation to swine flu, tips on breastfeeding and supplements...

The AP has written an article about our legislative effort - "The Influence Game - Birth Centers Fight for Fees" - and it is being picked nationwide!  This is a tremendous opportunity to not only gain media attention for your center but also to put pressure on your Representatives and Senators to sign-on to the Medicaid Birth Center Reimbursement Act (H.R. 2358, S.1423)

The article talks a lot about our lobbyist and she is truly wonderful and works for much less than she's worth. The article features the Family Health and Birth Center in Washington DC, which does wonderful work.

Steps to Take:

Savings Offered by the Birth Center Model of Care 

I put this study together and began mailing it to legislators - I encourage you pass it on as well (with lawmakers, a written letter is best). There are 3 big takeaways: ONE - Birth centers lower costs, TWO - Birth centers improve outcomes. Not included in the these numbers is another important fact: you can't have birth centers without midwives. Please read on... 

Novel H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu) By Sarah Stone, CNM 

Many Mountain Midwifery families have growing concerns about the H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu).  Almost all of our clients are in a priority group for surveillance, vaccination, and treatment due to fact that they are pregnant, nursing, or caring for young children.  Like any other vaccine, MMC does not have an official recommendation for or against receiving the H1N1 vaccine (or the seasonal flu vaccine), but we strive to provide helpful information that allows our clients to make the best choice for themselves and their family.   

Tracy and I just got back from the AABC conference. It was great to see all these little birth centers working big changes in people's lives. In addition to helping birth centers through legislation (see www.birthcenters.org - legislative alerts), I've started an effort to educate industry about the value of birth centers (improved maternal and infant outcomes at a lower cost).

 So if you know a

Mountain Midwifery Center is the most amazing birth center with midwives under the sun.  Never in my life have I received such attentive emotional, physical and medical care.  The entire staff is kind, fun, personable, and empathetic.  Honestly, I love these women and think everyone should at least investigate the idea of having a baby at a birth center and under the care of Midwives.

So that

Some folks have taken the time to share some nice things about us. You can check it out at...