CPM, CNM, midwife classifications???

[DarthP8r]

I'm looking for a midwife/midwives in Atlanta who'll do homebirths, and I'm quite a bit confused about the legal standing of the various titles of midwives, and what they're allowed to do. I know the acronyms (CPM=Certified Professional Midwife, CNM=Nurse, etc.) but I don't really know what the differences are.

For example, does a Direct-Entry Midwife (what's that, anyway?) a become a CPM by taking an exam?

I really need a "Midwife Tutorial".

Thanks.
Payter.

[jordmoder]

Ok, here goes -

CNM stands for Certified Nurse Midwife. They're nationally licensed, and in many states have to have a Masters in Nursing. They attend women in the hospital, and depending on their state/circumstances can attend women at home.

CPM is indeed Certified Professional Midwife, a relatively new thing. It is an attempt to have a national standard for Direct Entry (i.e., non-nurse) midwives, as every state has different requirements (or none, or illegal) to be a midwife.

I am licensed in Washington State, one of the few states that has licensure. I'm also a CPM.

The CPM standards are pretty high, and you have to get recertified every 3 years, with continuing education and testimonials etc.

I know it's all confusing - there are some good websites out there; if you type in Midwife in Google for example you'll get all kinds of stuff.

Good luck!

Barbara
home with Noah and EDD of 4/02

[DarthP8r]

Actually, it was the contradictive/incomplete infromation from many websites that *led* to my confusion in the first place.

Next question: Who can attend homebirths? Seems like CPM's are pretty restricted to hospitals and/or doctor-supervised facilities, correct?

[Midwife]

I thought I would add some comments:

It was stated that "CNM stands for Certified Nurse Midwife. They're nationally licensed, ..."
To provide more clarity, CNM's are not nationally licensed, but rather the ACNM is the national certifying body that grants the CNM credential. The CNM credential is recognized in all 50 of the states and each state has it's own regulatory acts that provide avenue for licensure and regulatory control for the practice of licensed nurse-midwifery.

Likewise, NARM is the national certifying body that grants the CPM credential. The CPM credential is not yet recognized in all 50 states (I believe 25 states do). In many of the states, the CPM credential is necessary for licensure and those states have their own regulations in place for the practice of licensed midwifery.

CNMs have been certified since 1971; CPMs since 1994; CMs since 1997.
I like to think the CPM has been around long enough to not think of it as "a relatively new thing" ...being that it is 12 years old : )

The CPM, requires out-of-hospital experience as a necessary part of midwifery education. ACNM's certifications, the CNM & CM, does not require out-of-hospital birth experience.


"NARM is committed to identifying standards and practices that reflect the excellence and diversity of the independent midwifery community in order to set the standard for North American midwifery". (Utah Friends of Midwives)



A Comparison of Certified Nurse-Midwives/Certified Midwives (CNMs/CMs) and Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs):

http://www.midwife.org/legislative.cfm?id=191

Here is your tutorial, thanks to Citizens for Midwifery:
http://cfmidwifery.org/midwifery/faq.aspx

Enjoy Midwifery ! Enjoy Nurse-Midwifery !
We are fortunate to have both of them !

Sandra

[BeckiCNM]

Originally Posted by Midwife

It was stated that "CNM stands for Certified Nurse Midwife. They're nationally licensed, ..."
To provide more clarity, CNM's are not nationally licensed, but rather the ACNM is the national certifying body that grants the CNM credential. The CNM credential is recognized in all 50 of the states and each state has it's own regulatory acts that provide avenue for licensure and regulatory control for the practice of licensed nurse-midwifery.

Likewise, NARM is the national certifying body that grants the CPM credential. The CPM credential is not yet recognized in all 50 states (I believe 25 states do). In many of the states, the CPM credential is necessary for licensure and those states have their own regulations in place for the practice of licensed midwifery.

Just a little more clarification...(please forgive me for sounding nit-picky ). ACNM isn't the national certifying body for CNM/CMs. The American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB) is. My certificate was issued by the AMCB, not the ACNM. They administer the exams, and manage all the continuing education we have to do.

It's like the AMCB is to ACNM as NARM is to MANA. The equivalent of MEAC is the ACNM's Division of Accreditation, which is not really part of ACNM either, but that's another story.

[mwherbs]

Originally Posted by DarthP8r

Next question: Who can attend homebirths? Seems like CPM's are pretty restricted to hospitals and/or doctor-supervised facilities, correct?

nope CNMs may be the ones you will find in the hospital- depending on the state they may be pretty much "restricted to hospital" but there are states where they are independent care providers but many choose not to do that sometimes it is the issue of malpractice insurance, pay and benefits , hrs.

CPMs in most places practice out side of the hospital either home or free standing birth centers

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here is the MANA web address of definitions

http://www.mana.org/definitions.html