NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — Dalton Roy Butler bounced into the world 11 weeks ago with the help of a midwife at Mary Immaculate Hospital in Newport News.
Due to a previous injury, his mom, Elaine Riitano, was told she would need a cesarean section, but she worked with a certified nurse midwife, who showed her another way.
“Our goal is to focus on the individual, her values, her culture, her needs, her life experiences and really tailor a care plan that is unique to her,” said certified nurse midwife Adrienne Jones.
A report from Yale shows that first-time moms giving birth at medical centers where midwives are on their care team were 74% less likely to have their labor induced, and 12% less likely to deliver by C-section.
Midwives have delivered 77% of vaginal births this year at Mary Immaculate.
Certified nurse midwife Kelcey St. Amand said this is because midwives use tools such as large round and peanut-shaped balls that allow women to see what their bodies can do naturally.
“Because if you’re doing the modern medicine model, it it’s very timed,” St. Amand said. “You have to make certain certain changes within your labor in a certain amount of time. And sometimes when you’re not moving, you don’t make those changes. So having the tools to keep them moving really helps progress labor.”
Midwifery in the U.S. dates back to 1925 and significantly decreased maternal and infant mortality after it was introduced.
“100 years later, here we are,” Jones said. “We have a maternal mortality crisis, and there’s excellent data showing that if we expand access to nurse midwives, we can impact the maternal mortality crisis that we’re currently in.”
There are approximately 400 licensed nurse midwives in Virginia. The WHO and other health experts say more midwives could make a big difference for women in rural areas where it is increasingly challenging to find care.
With the possibility of a C-section in the back of her mind, being in the hospital made Riitano more comfortable. She knew doctors were near if needed, but to her delight, Dalton’s delivery was perfectly natural.
“It was joyous and amazing, and I felt heard and I felt listened to,” Riitano said. “And it couldn’t have gone any better.”