Whitney Pinger Pioneers New Presentation on Benefits of Midwifery

In June, Whitney Pinger presented “Midwifery Pearls: Evidence for Clinical Practice” at the national conference of the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM). The presentation, originally created by Whitney in collaboration with the ACNM DC Chapter, is now promoted by the professional association as “Evidence‐based Practice: Pearls of Midwifery”: “a one‐of‐a‐kind presentation that...showcases the benefits of midwifery practices that support labor and childbirth for mothers and babies.” Read more about the “Pearls” presentation here.

Whitney Pinger and the DC Chapter of ACNM won a National Midwifery Media Award for their work on this presentation.
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"Pearls for Normal Birth"

• Encourage women to eat in early labor and drink throughout.
• No routine IV fluids: don’t dilute normal oxytocin levels.
• Intermittently auscultate the fetal heart rite.
• Keep women upright, mobile, and wet.
• Encourage doulas.
• Don’t routinely break the bag of water.
• Give women the time they need to birth their babies.
• Wait for women to involuntarily push; labor down with epidurals.
• No routine episiotomies or aggressive vaginal stretching.
• Delay cord clamping and actively but gently manage the third stage.
• Encourage immediate skin-to-skin contact and breastfeeding.
• Listen to the evidence, listen to women, and trust yourself.

Happy Midwifery Week

Photo by Damian Achilles

We’re celebrating Midwifery Week this year by honoring our growing WISDOM network and renewed focus on building our community. This week, we mark a milestone of 70 women who have recently joined our network at GWU.

The Midwife Connection blog is also celebrating Midwifery Week.