Five of the nurse midwives who were fired when Peacehealth closed its birth center—have new jobs. McKenzie Willamette hospital has hired them to run a midwifery service in Springfield.
McKenzie Midwives and Lactation Services opened Monday and has already supported three births and counting. Dana Cummings is the lead certified nurse midwife at the new center.
“We deliver and catch babies over at McKenzie Willamette Medical Center--it’s all hospital deliveries,” says Cummings.
Cummings says rebuilding a midwifery practice at this hospital was easy.
“The way McKenzie-Willamette feels, it has a smaller community feel, you do your labor, delivery, recovery, post-partum all in the same room,” Cummings said.
Cummings herself is pregnant and will have a midwife assisted birth in May. In the days since they opened, the midwives have welcomed 20 patients. They also provide delivery services for low-income moms at Lane County Prenatal Clinic.
All the certified midwives are advanced practice nurses, with a minimum of a master’s degree.