A Career in Midwifery

The Baystate Medical Center Midwifery Education Program is an autonomous post-baccalaureate certificate midwifery education program. Through both didactic and clinical components, the program prepares students to manage the health care of low-risk women and their newborns, and teaches the foundation of nurse midwifery practice. Graduates of the program are prepared to work with cultural competency, serving varied racial, ethnic and socioeconomic populations.

Beginning in the fall of 2008, the Baystate Midwifery Education Program will be transitioning to a 5-semester curriculum. Through collaboration with the Midwifery Institute of Philadelphia University, which offers distance-based master's completion, the Midwifery Education Program will to offer concurrent master's degree study within the 5-semester Midwifery Education Program curriculum.  This will allow graduates to meet the 2010 requirement that individuals applying to take the AMCB certification examination have a master's degree in nursing or another health-related field.  Applicants will need to be accepted by both schools.

Located within the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the Division of Midwifery and Community Health, the faculty are formally affiliated with Tufts University School of Medicine.

Future nurse-midwives have many career options in practice, research and education. 

Graduates of Baystate's Midwifery Education Program will be able to:

• Utilize a family-centered approach to manage the primary reproductive and gynecologic care of the essentially healthy woman and healthy term neonate.

• Provide relevant patient education in an understandable and culturally appropriate format.

• Assume responsibility for their own professional growth and for fostering the professional growth of other midwives.

• Work effectively with varied racial, ethnic, cultural and socioeconomic populations.

• Plan, develop, implement and evaluate nurse-midwifery services targeted to improve the health care system for women in vulnerable populations.

Accreditation

The Baystate Medical Center Midwifery Education Program is accredited by the American College of Nurse-Midwives, Division of Accreditation. The program was most recently reaccredited in 2007 for the maximum period of 10 years, until 2017.

Certification

Upon completion of the program, graduates are awarded a certificate in nurse-midwifery from Baystate Medical Center. As of 2010, students will be required to have a master's degree in a health-related field in order to sit for the national certification exam of the American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB).

New Developments

Collaboration with Midwifery Institute of Philadelphia University Allows Concurrent Midwifery and Master's Study

Information about MIPU's Midwifery Completion Program

Program Highlights

• 80 graduates in 15 years




• 100% first-time pass rate on the national certifying exam




• 92% of graduates enter full-scope midwifery clinical practice




• 60% of graduates provide care to medically underserved, vulnerable populations




• 75% of graduates start new practices