OWASSO, Okla. — Ascension St. John's Owasso campus introduced certified nurse midwives (CNMs) to its Labor & Delivery unit this month, an addition that hopes to boost maternity care and reduce health care deserts in Green Country.
Before the move, CNMs in the area had been virtually nonexistent outside the Indian Health System.
WATCH: Owasso St. John hospital adds midwives to labor & delivery unit
"We're just able to offer more services to women, more options," CNM Carla May said.
May said the additions make it possible for low-risk expecting moms who don't want to spend an arm and a leg to bring their bundles of joy into the world.
"We do all the well-woman care, not just prenatal care, and we catch babies," May said. "But if we have something going on in pregnancy that becomes a medical complication, we're right here with our OB/GYN physicians."
Oklahoma consistently ranks near the bottom in both medical care deserts and maternal mortality rates, but in Owasso, midwifery care now couples with traditional care capacities.
Nurse manager Ellen Mayberry hopes this steers the long discouraging statistics back in a better direction for soon-to-be parents outside of the big cities. She also doesn't rule out educational programs in the future.
"(Oftentimes) if you want a midwife to take care of you, you have to do it out of the hospital," Mayberry said. "And that's out of pocket, even if you have insurance. That's not accessible care for everybody. And so, we want everybody to get that care. That's the change."
"We have the largest (maternity care) group in Owasso, and I think that it's a wonderful thing that's going to be great for women in this area," May said.
Ascension St. John also recently moved one of its gynecologists from its Tulsa hospital to the Owasso location to bring better balance for feminine care demand, a spokesperson told 2 News.
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