Meet the midwives
P.E.I. celebrates arrival of new service, expanding options for expectant families
The first two registered midwives in P.E.I. have taken on clients this month, noting a high demand for the services.
About a month ago, the province announced the availability of midwifery services in P.E.I., after decades of local advocates calling for the need of midwifery services to provide care for Islanders throughout pregnancy, labour and post-birth.
Jill Nafziger, who is one of the midwives recently hired by the province, said she has heard from clients about how important it is for them to finally have continuous care before, during and after birth, and how long they waited for this service to be offered on the Island.
“People seem very excited to be able to have this as an option,” Nafziger told Saltwire in an interview Feb. 25. “P.E.I. is the last province to legislate midwifery. So it's been a long time coming here. And I know there's been a lot of people who have been involved in advocacy work trying to make it happen.”
‘AN OVERWHELMING RESPONSE’
Melissa Roberts, the midwifery lead in P.E.I., echoed that sentiment.
She said the provincial midwifery clinic, based at The Mount in Charlottetown, recently launched a request for care and received 62 responses in just 48 hours, covering everything from preconception care to care for pregnancy.
“We had an overwhelming response to our request,” Roberts said. “So it took us a while to kind of get through all of the people that reached out that was very important to us.”
The Island community recently welcomed the two midwives at an event on Feb. 25 at The Haviland Club, held by Birth Options Research Network (BORN), with more than 30 guests.
Megan Burnside, the coordinator of BORN, said the advocacy group has been working for decades to make midwifery services available here, and it is a cause for celebration now that the province finally has two officially registered midwives.
“We're celebrating that families can now have access to the service and that there's more choice available for Islanders,” Burnside said.
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“People seem very excited to be able to have this as an option. P.E.I. is the last province to legislate midwifery. So it’s been a long time coming here.”
Jill Nafziger
service expansion, informing the public about the benefits of midwifery and ensuring proper support for the midwives to have a sustainable practice, she said.
“We hope that the practice will be sustainable, and that over time, we'll see more and more midwives hired.”
STARTING SLOW
Both midwives bring more than a decade of clinical midwifery experience to the Island.
Roberts, originally from northern Newfoundland, spent most of her midwifery career in central Alberta. Since 2021, she has been involved in midwifery for P.E.I., focusing on developing key pieces like regulations.
She and her family moved to P.E.I. in August last year. In December, Nafziger, originally from Ontario, joined the team.
Currently, midwifery clients can choose to give birth at either the Queen Elizabeth Hospital or at home. But there are plans to expand the services to the Prince County Hospital. Expectant mothers from all over P.E.I. can apply for the service on the province’s website.
Roberts said conducting home visits might involve significant travel for the small team of just her and Nafziger, and they plan to work around schedules to accommodate different families in various locations in P.E.I.
“We really don't want accessibility to be a barrier to people receiving our care. However, with just two midwives, we will need to be a bit creative sometimes. And we will ask families to be a bit flexible for us,” she said, adding the team will expand soon.
Another midwife is set to join the team this summer, and the province actively seeks more recruits.
As for Nafziger, she said their small team is currently "starting slow" due to the limited staff but they expect to become busier over time as they take on more clients.
“Our first due dates will be in May. So we won't be attending actual births until then. But we're starting with clinic to do prenatal care, to be able to meet our clients and get to know them before they're having their babies,” Nafziger said.
SERVICES BEING OFFERED
The province’s website says midwives will offer care from preconception through to eight weeks postpartum for clients and their newborns.
Preconception counseling can be tailored to meet a family's needs, whether that involves discussing fertility issues, planning for an upcoming pregnancy, PAP/HPV screening or providing information about midwifery.
Midwives have the ability to request screening and diagnostic tests, such as ultrasounds and bloodwork, and can prescribe various medications relevant to the client's care.