An advanced apprentice midwife who is accepting her own midwifery clients under the supervision of an experienced, senior midwife. Although NMI was founded as Midwifery Institute of California, it is now a national correspondence program. The monthly subscription fee is intended to be fair and accessible to all students while allowing for fair and equitable payment of staff and instructors, and institutional sustainability. As of 2022, the Study Group curriculum fulfills all NMI graduation requirements, as well as all essential core competencies required by our accreditor, MEAC. An applicant who fails to comply with a request for information related to the application, or fails to meet all requirements for a permit within 120 calendar days from the date of filing shall submit a new application and fee if a permit is sought at a later date. MCCPM is proud to promote, protect and preserve midwifery as practiced by Certified Professional Midwives in the state of Minnesota.

NARM Accountability Update Accountability provides reassurance to families who choose CPMs as their care providers and to states who utilize the CPM for legal recognition. The Colorado Office of Direct-Entry Midwifery Registration (Office) regulates individual registered direct-entry midwives in the State of Colorado. The Office’s mission is to maintain the profession’s integrity and protect its consumers. The Office works in conjunction with the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM) and the Colorado Midwives Association (CMA).
A nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve maternal-child health by preventing unnecessary cesareans through education, providing support for cesarean recovery, and promoting Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC). We also will work with you and your insurance provider through our billing service to include some or all reimbursement for your care. During a prenatal visit, vital signs are monitored as well as baby’s size, position, heart rate, and discussion of physical and emotional issues or challenges that may arise. We also offer information, resources, and support for self-care through pregnancy and beyond. Occasionally, students need to take a break for financial reasons or other life responsibilities.
Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA)MANA is a professional organization for all midwives. The mission of MANA is to provide a nurturing forum for support and cooperation among midwives. (2) Individuals appointed in accordance with paragraph (1) of this subsection who are required to be licensed or certified shall be licensed or certified to practice their respective professions in the District. The issue of providing CPM licensure and insurance coverage during the COVID‐19 pandemic, however, is complex and requires important considerations before expanding midwifery services. Doulas – Doulas are NOT maternity care providers, although they do provide informational support to mothers during childbirth along with physical and emotional care. The rise of the medical care model, the practice of obstetrics, and the clash of care models, cultures, class, race, and gender dynamics throughout the years have shaped the practice and spurred the creation of different pathways and professional bodies.
State licensing or certification applications are made separately from application to NMI or to NARM, with regulations specific to each state. All CPM candidates are required to demonstrate acquisition of the required knowledge and skills and to have performed competently as primary midwife under supervision. Certification is renewed every three years, and all CPMs must obtain continuing education and participate in peer review for recertification. In addition, NARM requires that each CPM have written practice guidelines, a process for informed disclosure and consent with clients, including a HIPAA privacy policy, and that the CPM participates in a one-time cultural competency course for certification or recertification. Evidence of ongoing continuing education is required to maintain the CPM credential. As our knowledge of the pathophysiology of COVID‐19 on maternal and neonatal health evolves, so must our health policy response.
Given concerns of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) acquisition in health care settings and hospital policies reducing visitors for laboring patients, many pregnant women are increasingly considering planned home births. Several state legislatures are considering increasing access to home births by granting licensure and Medicaid coverage of certified professional midwife (CPM) services. In this commentary, issues surrounding the expansion of CPM services including safety, standardization of care, patient satisfaction, racial and income equity, and an overburdened health care system are discussed. Lawmakers must account for these factors when considering proposals to expand CPM practice and payment during a pandemic. At the outset of the certification program, it was recognized that many experienced midwives had been practicing for years and no longer worked under supervision.
CNMs are independent practitioners in most states, however a few states require physician supervision. NARM resumed processing applications and registering candidates for the NARM Written Examination. The testing company stores the databank for the test items, and prints, stores, ships, and scores the Written Examination.
For low‐risk women opting for home delivery, providing provisional licensure to CPMs allows for involvement of a health care worker without worry of legal consequence. Regulation may also provide CPMs with increased resources and equipment and improved coordination of transfer to higher levels of care if necessary. Similarly, offering temporary Medicaid coverage may provide health care support for women opting for home births who were previously financially restricted from such services. Home births also allow both the patient and the newborn increased access to individualized support, while reducing strain on hospital systems burdened with COVID‐19–specific needs and staffing shortages. Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) practice in a variety settings, but usually in birth centers and homes. They are certified by the North American Registry of Midwives and must meet specific educational criteria before taking an exam to gain the CPM credential.
The College curriculum and online classrooms are accessible via a web-based learning management system. Students use the online platform to receive and submit assignments, participate in discussion boards with fellow students, and take tests. Our distance format allows students to complete their academic and clinical work in their home communities, while still having the advantage of interacting with fellow students and teachers during regularly scheduled live web classes. The Big Push for Midwives Campaign represents tens of thousands of people in the United States who support increasing access to Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs), out-of-hospital maternity care, and more birth options for women in America.
The certification process requires that these minimum clinical experiences be performed under the supervision of a preceptor who verifies that the student can perform the skills, and exhibits the knowledge necessary for the safe, independent practice of midwifery. “Certified professional midwife”
means a person who holds a current and valid national certification as a
certified professional midwife from the North American Registry of Midwives, or
any successor organization. NACPM provides the opportunity to maximize the potential of the CPM credential and the midwives who hold it by radically expanding the availability of midwives to women and their families.The NACPM will promote and support CPMs and their work. It will strive to ensure that midwifery as practiced by CPMs will take its rightful place in the delivery of maternity care to women and families in the United States. Traditional Birth Attendant – Usually refers to direct entry midwives in developing countries. These midwives have varying degrees of medical and/or empirical training and experience, and traditional skills and wisdom unfamiliar to western medicine, even as they may work in resource-poor settings and extremely difficult circumstances.

“Lay” Midwife

Also, any person who violates the provisions of this act is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. Licensed professional midwives shall follow current requirements for stillbirth and spontaneous fetal death reports, birth certificates and newborn screening. Such midwives shall also be required to retain patient records for a period of six years and keep such records confidential consisted with federal law.
The outcome of these meetings was the realization that direct-entry midwives needed to develop their own credentialing and accrediting mechanisms. The IWG members began the task of assimilating direct-entry skills lists from the existing educational institutions and other resources. The final meeting of the IWG contributed to the development of a skill/task checklist to identify skills necessary for competent entry-level practice of midwives who practice in predominately out-of-hospital settings. The skills identified by the IWG and the idea of developing a certification process were presented to the MANA Board.
Should any complications occur that are beyond my resources, hospital care is truly necessary and appreciative. When that happens, I am grateful we have good hospitals to transfer to with supportive staff meeting us there. Licensed midwives must participate in continuing education and peer performance reviews, and practice within state statutes. As of 2021, 31 states had some kind of legal recognition for CPMs (licensure, certification, registration, permit, or voluntary registration), with most offering licensure based on the CPM certification. All applicants for initial licensure must submit proof of completing the jurisprudence examination at the time they submit their Texas Midwife License Application. “Interconception” means care provided
to mothers between pregnancies to improve health outcomes for women, newborns,
and children.
Experience, training, and medical backup for emergencies are important things to consider when contracting the services of a CPM. Almost all of these states license or certify midwives by using either the CPM credential or the NARM Written Examination. While graduation from our program and passing the NARM exam leads to a national credential, application for additional state licensure is required in many states.
“Certified midwife” means a person
who holds a current and valid national certification as a certified midwife
from the American Midwifery Certification Board, or any successor organization. The first step in the certification process is an evaluation of the applicant’s education and clinical training according to the standards set by the Portfolio Evaluation Process. After training and an apprenticeship under an experienced midwife, a CPM takes a written test and a skills exam before being certified by the North American Registry of Midwives. A statewide self regulating organization of CPMs and CNMs dedicated to the continuation of midwifery and the freedom of choice in childbirth. Experience and statistics have proven the safety of planned home birth and the effectiveness of midwives in promoting the health and well-being of mothers, babies and families. With full-time study – more than 30hrs per week spent on coursework and clinicals – the program is designed to be completed in 3 years.
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Certified professional midwife

Temporary state‐mandated Medicaid coverage of CPM services may make home birth more accessible to low‐income communities and women of color. Graduates from MEAC-accredited schools have the highest rate of passing the NARM examination of all midwifery students. Many doulas also provide support to mothers and infants in the weeks following childbirth, and still others specialize in providing emotional support to families regarding abortion, adoption, infertility, miscarriage, and stillbirth. While some doulas work directly for birth centers or hospitals, most are hired directly by expecting mothers and provide services in the home. Because of their dual training in nursing and midwifery, CNMs are well qualified to provide care to women not just during the childbearing years, but also across their lifespan. They provide regular well woman visits, gynecologic checkups, contraceptive and family planning services, and treatment of STDs, among other services.
CPMs practice as autonomous health professionals working within a network of relationships with other maternity care professionals who can provide consultation and collaboration when needed. The Rock Creek Midwives are licensed Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs), accredited through the North American Registry of Midwives. CPMs receive intensive midwifery training including academic study and in-depth apprenticeship over a three-year period. They are independent practitioners and do not need a backup doctor to provide care. All midwives and assistants are trained at length in birth emergency skills and hold current CPR and Neonatal Resuscitation certifications. Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) are midwives who specialize, by education and experience, in out-of-hospital maternity care and birth in private homes and freestanding birth centers.
A Certified Professional Midwife (CPM)® is a knowledgeable, skilled and professional independent midwifery practitioner who has met the standards for certification set by the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM) and is qualified to provide the Midwives Model of Care. The CPM is the only midwifery credential that requires knowledge about and experience in out-of-hospital settings. The scope of practice of the CPM is derived from the NARM Job Analysis and individual practice guidelines developed by each midwife according to their skills and knowledge. The guiding principles of the practice of CPMs are to work with their clients to promote a healthy pregnancy and provide education to help them make informed decisions about their own care. In partnership with their clients, CPMs carefully monitor the progress of the pregnancy, labor, birth, newborn, and postpartum period. The key elements of this education, monitoring, and decision making process are based on evidence-based practice which includes thoughtful integration of the best available evidence, coupled with clinical expertise, and the client’s values and needs.

A Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) is a practitioner who met the standards set by the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM). A CPM is a qualified professional who is knowledgeable and skilled to work as an independent midwife in out-of-hospital settings. North American Registry for Midwives (NARM)NARM is an international certification agency who establishes and administers certification for the Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) credential.
All students, regardless of time spent on Leave of Absence, must complete the program in 7 years. Students are charged a monthly subscription tuition fee to access the curriculum materials and institutional supports and services. Once the above documents are received and fully complete, the application will be sent to the board for review and approval. If approved, division staff will notify both the applicant and NARM of approval to take the NARM exam. Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs) usually practice within hospital settings after earning a nursing degree.
CNMs are also qualified to provide neonatal care during the first 28 days of life. In 1996, NARM contracted with Schroeder Measurement Technologies (SMT) to oversee test development for the written and the skills examinations, test administration, and the processing of the portfolio application program. The earlier versions of the exam (Forms A-C) had evolved from a combination of multiple choice and essay, to a total multiple choice format of 350 questions. Each subsequent version of the written exam has been 350 multiple-choice questions. The first administration of Form D of the Written Examination, developed by SMT, was in August of 1996. The exam has been updated every two years, per NCCA Standards, following the test blueprint identified by the Job Analysis.