Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Jana and Jill on Midwifery

In the following video, Jana and Jill Duggar share their midwifery experiences and goals for the future:

31 comments:

  1. that is great that they want to learn? But since they would be going to college anytime soon the dream will not becoming true. you cannot do online classes for mid wife. they can learn hands on but they also need college.

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    1. We had been told that Jill is/was doing the required science lab classes at a local college thru the College Plus program.

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    2. Arkansas does not require college to be a lay mid-wife.

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  2. In this world anthing is posable if u put ur mine to it an thy are to beautiful an smart girls gd luck with ur dream make it come true god bless u

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  3. There are multiple paths to midwifery, including correspondence school and apprenticeship. I wish them well on their chosen professions. With their experience within their family, along with their educations, they will be excellent birth professionals, I'm sure. From a Mom of 5 children, all born midwife-assisted...we (heart) midwives and doulas! And Duggars :-D

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  4. Here in Austrailia, you have to become a nurse before taking your midwifery course. And then the midwifery course is an extra 4 years of study and practical work.

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  5. Sorry, Anonymous, but I have several friends who are wonderful, practicing midwives who never went to college. They did what Jana and Jill are doing.

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  6. @ Anonymous- they're doing collegeplus. :)


    Great video! Good for them.

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  7. Actually, in Arkansas, you CAN become a licensed midwife without going to college. You apprentice and take an exam. There are stringent requirements, but college is not one of them.

    You are correct that you cannot become a *certified NURSE midwife* without college. But in Arkansas, you can become a licensed lay midwife without college, and most homebirth moms prefer an LLM to a CNM.

    Also Jill said she is taking anatomy and physiology online, those are some pretty tough classes. You can get a degree online these days :)

    Mrs P

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  8. who said they are going to colledge

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  9. Hello, I 've got a question. What is a doula? Idon't know this. Thanks.

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  10. @Anonymous

    Hi Anonymous,

    A doula is a woman who assists other women during labor and after childbirth. Doulas focus more on the coaching aspect, whereas midwives are fully certified to deliver babies.

    ~Lily and Ellie

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  11. I think that it is great that they are going into midwifery! they will have a wonderful experience :D

    -Courageous4Jesus

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  12. Why don't they go to college?

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  13. @Anonymous

    Hi Anonymous,

    Jim Bob and Michelle encourage their kids to gain different skills and experience various career potentials in order to figure out what they are truly passionate about. If that means pursuing a college education, then they are all for it, but their goal is for their kids to be driven by God's plan for their lives instead of by what the world says is the norm.

    ~Lily and Ellie

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  14. Ya, and no one is going to be around when they deliver a baby and there are issues. Hope they can get phenomenal malpractice insurance! No college- dear lord yes please help them!

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  15. Lay Midwives do not carry malpractice insurance. Not only do they deliver babies with little more than a high school diploma, there is no accountability if they screw up!

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    1. Home birth is statistically safety than hospitals despite the technology, advanced degrees, and malpractice insurance. I'd personally rather be in the safer environment than to be in a hospital that does not practice based on the best evidence just because I could sue them. That is not my idea of peace of mind.

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    2. Actually, if you look at the statistics, home birth has a higher rate of complications. Elaine RN

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  16. I would like to become a Midwife in the future. Does anyone have any tips of what I should study and In what particular order.

    Thanks.

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    1. There are several midwifery schools you can apply to. Check out the Michigan School of Traditional Midwifery. Also, you can look at ” The Farm” midwifery assistant training to get you started.

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  17. Great for the girls! Glad they have found a profession they will soon love. This will be great for their them in the future too. Once they have children of their own if they are still driven to midwifery they are able to balance both with children since this isn't a nine to five type of job. I wasn't aware you did not have to go to nursing school first, but more power to them for finding a way to achieve their goals. I don't understand why anyone would want to discredit the girls are their goals.

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  18. I don't think anyone wishes to discredit the girls for their interest in midwifery. However, many states no longer lay midwives to practice due to a lack of adequate knowledge and skills, with a sad track record when home births go wrong - and they can go wrong quickly, requiring someone with the knowledge and skills to recognize the signs and take swift, appropriate action as necessary. Certified Registered Nurse Midwives are highly trained and educated, yet are supportive of moms and the natural birth process, "medicalizing" the birthing process only when this is deemed safer for mom and baby. CRNMs are nurses with master's degrees and many hours of internship, a path that ensures a level of competence that the more ambiguous "midwife" designation does not.

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    1. Thank you Betsy, well said and absolutely true. Elaine RN

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  19. I am a newly graduated midwife and I find it frightening that someone with little more than a high school diploma can become a "midwife". I had 5 years of experience as a BSN RN then 2 years of graduate school to get my masters to be to be eligible to sit to take the midwifery exam. This is a very challenging field with many potential risks and people should be trained appropriately.

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  20. Why do the Duggers prefer to go the lay midwife route when they are intelligent enough to know that getting a masters degree and the hours of internship that come with the degree would be preferable for their clients. Show respect to the families who may depend on you.

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  21. @Anonymous Actually, the Association of Texas Midwives offers online classes with quarterly seminars. This is followed by a year of interning with a practicing midwife. This is the process that they are in. You can learn more here: http://www.texasmidwives.com/

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  22. My daughter is a U.K. midwife.She already had a double honours language degree,then did 4 years to do a Bsc midwifery degree.Worked for 8 years,THEN 18 months to do masters in health visiting.doing a local course in science scares me witless.These girls are most definitely NOT midwives.

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  23. I believe that it is amazing that you girls want to be midwives. After seeing one of the episodes that was talking about being midwives, I was inspired to be a midwife! Since I was like 6, I wanted to be an obstetrician, but I didn't want to work at a hospital and do surgery, so now, I am going to be a Midwife. You girls are two of three midwife role models for me!

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  24. For anyone curious about the difference between Certified Nurse Midwives and Certified Professional Midwives (the route Jill is going), here is a link to information about the education requirements/training/scope of practice. http://www.midwife.org/WhatIsAMidwife#TypesofMidwives I am working on my Master's in Nursing (Women's Health) and plan to also do the CNM specialization. When making this decision, I researched more into the training for CPMs and even met with one to learn more about the services they provide and how they handle complications (CNMs often do not provide home births, and I wanted to know referral options). While a home birth would not be my personal choice, I would feel comfortable referring patients desiring home births to CPMs. While anyone could call him/herself a midwife in the US, nurse midwives and CPMs have to receive certification that they have met criteria for their titles.

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  25. This is definitely not the place to get factual information about midwifery. The people commenting here and claiming to have this degree or that qualification and then presenting 'statistics' and evidence could be anyone. If you want to find out about midwifery, check the regulations and qualifications for your state or country yourself. Please do not take any information presented here as facts. I could just as easily type the words "Erika RN" or "I have a masters degree" as anybody can...that doesn't mean its true.

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