Welcome to the home page of the Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center Midwives!

Our Practice

Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs) have been an integral part of Northern California Kaiser Permanente since 1990. We have had a presence here at South Sacramento since 1998. What started as a small group with only limited time on Labor and Delivery has grown to a large group of midwives that covers Labor and Delivery, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. We offer pre-natal visits in our clinic two to three days a week in South Sacramento, and one day a week in Elk Grove.

Certified Nurse Midwives are educated in the dual fields of nursing and midwifery. We hold RN degrees and have additional education in midwifery (many of us with a Masters Degree), which enables us to independently manage the care of women in pregnancy, labor, birth, postpartum and in between pregnancies for gynecologic care. We can prescribe medications, order laboratory studies, diagnose problems and treat conditions that pertain to women's health. Statistics nationwide show midwifery care to be the safest, most satisfying care for childbearing women, and we are proud to offer this high quality care to our Kaiser Permanente Members.

Midwifery is based on respect for birth as a normal life event. Most labors and births progress safely with little or no intervention. Midwives deeply appreciate the beauty of normal birth. With midwifery care, more labors remain safe "normal" events. If the birthing process becomes complicated, we are here to recognize the problem quickly and to advise the woman and her family about the next steps. At Kaiser Permanente, we collaborate closely with our OB/GYN physicians to assure that medical and obstetrical issues are effectively taken care of. The safety and health of the mother and baby is our top priority.

Our Philosophy

We believe that when there is a personal trust and connection between the childbearing woman and her care team at South Sacramento Kaiser Permanente, the woman will feel safer and labor will go more smoothly. We know that this relationship can be forged with a laboring woman in a matter of minutes, and we enter into it wholeheartedly.

We strive to empower the pregnant women with knowledge and support her right to fully understand, choose and take responsibility for the kinds of procedures used during the labor and birth.

We recognize that members are individuals and because of personal, cultural and religious perspectives, every birth experience will be different.

We believe in the wisdom of gentleness. We believe in emotional support, listening to women, breastfeeding, relaxing with a new baby, and we appreciate the whole family's role and needs as a new person is born. We are grateful to be midwives.

We believe that the best way to protect the health and safety of mother and baby is within a partnership with the birthing woman and her family.

We believe that midwifery care makes a difference to our families at South Sacramento. We look forward to meeting and taking care of you!

You can view our individual personal statements here.

Disclaimer
If you think you have a MEDICAL OR PSYCHIATRIC EMERGENCY, CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY or go to the nearest hospital. DO NOT attempt to access emergency care through this web site. An emergency medical condition is a medical or psychiatric condition that manifests itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity (including severe pain) such that you could reasonably expect the absence of immediate medical attention to result in any of the following: serious jeopardy to your health, serious impairment to your bodily functions, or serious dysfunction of any bodily organ or part. An emergency medical condition is also "active labor," which means a labor when there is inadequate time for safe transfer to a Plan hospital (or designated hospital) before delivery or if a transfer poses a threat to the health of the member or unborn child.

This site may contain links to other web sites outside of www.permanente.net. Kaiser Permanente has no control over the content or the availability of these sites, and is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such Web sites. Web links are provided as an educational tool, and should not be relied upon for personal diagnosis or treatment. A link or reference to a web site should not be construed as an endorsement of the site or its contents. Any medical content that you feel may be important to your health should always be discussed with your Kaiser Permanente physician.