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18 Fredericksburg Parent and Family • October 2022 INTERVIEWED BY EMILY FREEHLING Certified Nurse Midwives (CNM's) are highly qualified and educated health pro- fessionals who aim to honor a woman's birth wishes. According to the American College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM) and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG), CNMs are qualified also to provide primary care for women throughout their lives. The World Health Organization (WHO) advocates for early prenatal care and recognizes nurse midwives as central to women's primary health care. Here at Mary Washington Health Care, we are proud to offer the same philosophy and clinical approach to prenatal, intrapartum and post-natal care. That is why Mary Washington Obstetrics and Gynecology is committed to making midwives avail- able in its practice. Now accepting new patients, Mary Washington Obstetrics and Gynecology has four certified nurse midwives on staff who can help women navigate their pregnancies, labor, delivery and any stage of their reproductive lives, including pre-conception counseling and care. As our October experts, two members of the Mary Washington team of certified nurse midwives—Gustava Zimmer, who is both an adult nurse practitioner and a certified nurse midwife, and Mariah Battle, certified nurse midwife and board- certified women's health nurse practitioner—join us to talk about how midwives approach prenatal care, and how this benefits women. Midwives Make a Difference Q: What is a certified nurse midwife? GUSTAVA ZIMMER, CNM, AGNP-C: A certified nurse midwife (CNM) has com- pleted a bachelor's of science in nursing, followed by a master's degree in nursing and the practice of midwifery. In addition to these, I also have a Post Master's Degree in Adult and Gerontology Primary Care. According to the American College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM) "the midwifery model of care achieves optimal health for women through the lifespan and CNMs have exper- tise in primary and gynecologic care, pro- mote optimal pregnancy, physiologic birth, post-partum care and care of the newborn for the first 28 days of life. A CNM's biggest focuses are to teach, support and empower women in their decisions." MARIAH BATTLE, CNM, WHNP-BC: A midwife can be an important health care partner throughout several different devel- opmental processes in your life, from when you first start menstruation on through menopause. We are there to hold your hand and give you the educated information you need so that you can be empowered to make healthy decisions for yourself and your family. SPONSORED MATERIAL