CNM practicing in Massachusetts

No advice really as I am going through the process right now. I am a CPM and just graduated nursing school on my way to CNM. Midwives in Mass have recently been given greater autonomy, and while I don't think any CNMs currently do home birth, they could in theory. Just like anywhere, midwives are going to vary in how much they follow a "midwifery" model vs a medical model.

My pipe dream is to work with a CNM/OB group affiliated with a major medical center, and offer home birth with complete continuity of care in the event of a transfer. I think it would be awesome, and add a greater element of safety since in my opinion the biggest problem with home birth in the U.S. is that home birth midwives are not fully integrated into the medical system.

Hi Cayenne06! I know this is an old thread, but I think we may be in a similar boat. I've got a few questions I'm hoping that you can answer. Firstly, are you applying to Baystate's program for 2013? (I saw your comment on another thread). I'm a BSN-RN and Im debating between Baystate and Frontier but I'm leaning more toward Baystate, it seems like a great program. Have you ever heard of the MS in Midwifery being a hindrance to finding work compared to the MSN?

Also, I've been having trouble getting a clear answer on the following two questions:

1.) Because of the new law, can MA CNMs now attend home births? Where can I confirm this info?

2.) As an RN w a MA license, can I attend home births as midwife's assistant (and only do tasks which I've been trained to do as a nurse, no baby catching,etc), or would I be stepping outside my scope of practice? I have a CPM who would be willing to work w me and would the opportunity.

I just moved to MA from NY where CPMs are sadly not recognized, but CNMs have a lot of autonomy. Also, I have several RN friends who are home birth midwife assistants. I hadn't realized it could be an issue until I moved here.

Any info you could share w be really appreciated! : ) thanks!

Just saw this, sorry!
Yes, I am applying to Baystate for fall 2013. and YES! CNMs in Mass can provide home birth services autonomously, under the new legislation. No one is doing it yet, but I think it will come in time. There is also a bill in the works to license CPMs as LMs. That law will only be worthwhile if they include mandated insurance/medicaid reimbursement, but it is a good first step. Feel free to PM me and I will answer any questions I can.

Thanks for replying! I'd love to chat further but can't PM as I'm a relatively new member. Im struggling between Frontier and Baystate. I was very sad to learn that Baystate has essentially no financial aid, so Im not sure if I can swing it. Have you considered Frontier? If you decided against it, can i ask why? Personally, id much prefer a program in person than online, plus im concerned about finding my own preceptor. I went to the Baystate info session a few nights ago and was impressed w the program. Plus I really liked Barbara Graves, the director. Im glad to learn that the new legislature might encourage some home birth CNMs. I was told by one CNM that the biggest problem is finding a physician who will collaborate because their insurance won't allow it/is too expensive. As someone who is coming from Ny where there are lots of home birth CNMs, I'm still not quite understanding the difference. If you get a chance please email me at motherwisdomdoula@gmail.com

thanks and good luck!!

Hello Ladies,
In a very similar boat but trying to decide whether to leave MA to do a 3 year direct entry MSN for CNM or whether to stay and do an accelareted BSN and then apply to CNM masters which will take long and so may not really be cheaper???
confused
emily

EmmKay

If you're looking at a direct-entry MSN, does this mean you have a Bachelor's degree already?

If so, you have a few options. You can complete the RN in a two year program, and a few programs will allow you to enter with the patchwork RN and Bachelor's in something else. (Frontier has a portfolio process in this circumstance.)

Frontier also admits ADN students directly through a bridging program.

I'm just finishing up my RN through a tech college - and I have a Bachelor's degree in another field. Years ago I was admitted to a direct-entry MSN to become a CNM, but I found the cost to be way to high for the meager quality of the education. Yes, it gets you there fast, but it also gets you into a boatload of debt. Jury's out on whether my Bachelor's degree "means anything" to the power-that-be in the nursing world. Some say I need a BSN, others say I don't.

I figure if graduate schools are admitting non-nurses directly into MSN/DNP programs, why wouldn't they accept the same candidates who've added an RN to their CV? And doing that saved me about $30K. But, yeah, cost me a lot of time.

I'm not sure anymore of which graduate schools will accept RNs with Bachelor's degrees in other fields. Many schools are going exclusively to DNP for advance practice nursing degrees. They seemed to have altered their requirements somewhat.

Reasons to BSN/accelerated BSN: ADN programs are being cut out of their clinical sites in favor of BSN students. At least they where I live. Every semester our program would lose one or two clinical sites, and we'd have to commute further and further into the sticks. I found that accelerated BSN programs cost the same as graduate school credits. When I was looking at that option.

I have no regrets getting an ADN degree at ~$120/credit compared to $600-$700-$800 per credit for these acclerated BSN or Master's degree programs for getting an RN.

Maybe I'll be crying when no one wants to hire me because I don't have the right letters on my resume. But the cost-savings was a no-brainer. I can always do a BSN completion if I need to.

Just out of curiosity, are there any male nurse midwives?

Yes. Not a lot, but they're out there. One of the midwifery professors at Yale is a male midwife.