Hours

[ixchel]

I've read a lot on here about the hours that are typical for working as a CNM. I just chatted with my mentor and she was telling me her schedule. I'm overwhelmed just thinking about it. She has 3 days in the office. One of those days ends with her beginning her on call, which is a 24 hour shift, which she works weekly. Then she has one on call weekend a month. I believe when she has her on call weekend, she's doesn't have call on the weekday that she typically has. So, on regular weeks, that's about 48 hours, and then on weeks where she's in on the weekend, that's 60-ish hours for the weekend and then her normal office hours for the week. I'm wrapping my mind around that. It seems like a lot, but then again, on call doesn't always mean there will be patients in labor and delivering non-stop.

It got me wondering, though. I know some of you have 2 office days, and 2 on calls, or something similar, where you only work 2-4 days a week and you end up not going much over 40 hours. Do those of you who regularly go over 40 hours by a lot have pay that reflects all of those extra hours? Or in general, are salaries for CNMs pretty steady regardless of the number of hours on call and in the office?

[LittleWing21, RN]

I'm very curious as to what CNMs' schedules are like too. I've tried asking on this board before, but didn't get too many answers. Seems to vary a lot...which is sort of daunting in a "what could I be getting myself into" kind of way. Good luck finding answers!

[Calzo]

I'm curious too as I have been considering going back to school.

[mommy2boysaz]

This varies so much depending on where you work and how you choose to practice. If you are employed by a hospital vs having a private practice, it will be different. The practice I work with has 3 midwives. It is a private practice and each midwife is on call 24/7 for her own patients. They do 3 days per week in the office and attend all of their own births. Some weeks no one births. Some weeks 5 or 6 people birth! They also get paid a percentage of what they bring in. No set salary. So their income depends on how busy they are.

It's definitely not for everyone, but the patients LOVE that they have the same midwife all the way through. Great for continuity of care. Not so great for the midwives' families...

[arabianeyez83]

Where I do clinicals at a big hospital, The midwives do not have any on call hours. If you work 40 hrs, you have 2-8 hr clinic days and 2-12 hour L&D days, My preceptor is 32 hrs part time, she has one clinic day and 2-12 hr shifts in L&D.