Birthwise Midwifery School

Birthwise Midwifery School

Birthwise Midwifery School, located in the Lakes Region of Western Maine, is a comprehensive training program for Certified Professional Midwives (CPM’S). Our mission is to train student to be skilled and compassionate direct-entry midwives who will provide care informed both by tradition and evidence-based science. We are an educational resource for aspiring and professional maternity care providers.

Heidi Fillmore started the school in 1994, in response to a growing interest in midwifery and the lack of formal learning opportunities for aspiring midwives in Maine and New England. Since that time, we have evolved into a comprehensive training program for CPM’s which is accredited by the Midwifery Education Accreditation Council, licensed by the State of Maine- Department of Education, recognized by the US Immigration and Naturalization Service for acceptance of international students, and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education for Title IV funding.

Birthwise Midwifery School’s most recent change came June 30, when it became a nonprofit. We are excited to have a board of directors which will broaden the circle of professionals who will help lead the school into the future.

Program Overview

The Birthwise curriculum follows the core competency document designed by the Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA) as the standard body of knowledge necessary for the entry level direct-entry midwife. Beyond these core competencies, Birthwise offers additional instruction in Well Woman Care, Pharmacology, Botanicals, Homeopathy, Doula Care, Childbirth Preparation Classes, Research and other skill-enhancing areas of study. Birthwise employs midwives as faculty members from a full spectrum of backgrounds, training and orientation, from CNM’s to apprentice-trained midwives. This is done intentionally to expose students to the rainbow of possibilities for their own futures as midwives. We encourage students to find their place among the possible midwifery styles. Birthwise serves aspiring direct-entry midwives who want a more structured and streamlined academic course than self- study can provide, who want to learn the art of midwifery from a traditional point of view, who learn best in a community of learners, who want to experience many and diverse teachers, who like an intimate learning environment where individual attention is available, and who desire an interactive and personal classroom environment.

Birthwise offers two arrangements of its curriculum to meet the needs of our diverse student body: the Campus-based program and the Community-based program. Both programs are MEAC accredited, offer the same curriculum, and prepare students to sit for the national certification exam to become Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs).

Our Campus-based program begins each September and meets 2-3 days per week. Students begin local clinical rotations in their second and third semester. During the fourth semester, students begin transitioning into their full time preceptorship by attending 8 weeks of classes at Birthwise and then moving on to their preceptorship where the bulk of the student's clinical experience will be obtained. Students do not attend classes at Birthwise during the preceptorship. Application deadline for the Campus-based program is April 1.

The Community-based program starts in June every other year. It is designed for those who do not want to relocate to Maine. The program consists of ten 2-week intensive academic sessions in Bridgton, Maine, alternated with longer periods of clinical work with a midwife from the student’s home community. This is followed by an additional year of preceptorship. Application deadline for the Community-based program is March 1.

Contact

Email: info@birthwisemidwifery.edu

Address:
Birthwise Midwifery School
24 South High Street
Bridgton, Maine 04009

Tel: (207) 647-5968
Fax: (207) 647-5919

(all images credit Birthwise Midwifery School)