Comparison of midwifery care to medical care in hospitals in the Quebec pilot projects study: clinical indicators. L'Equipe dEvaluation des Projets-Pilotes Sages-Femmes.

The purpose of this study was to compare indicators of process and outcome of midwifery services provided in the Quebec pilot projects to those associated with standard hospital-based medical services. Women receiving each type of care (961 per group) were matched on the basis of socio-demographic characteristics and level of obstetrical risk. We found midwifery care to be associated with less obstetrical intervention and a reduction in selected indicators of maternal morbidity (caesarean section and severe perineal injury). For neonatal outcome indicators, midwifery care was associated with a mixture of benefits and risks: fewer babies with preterm birth and low birthweight, but a trend toward a higher stillbirth ratio and more frequent requirement for neonatal resuscitation. The study design does not permit to conclude that the associations were causal in nature. However, the high stillbirth rate observed in the group of women who were selected for midwife care raises concerns both regarding the appropriateness of the screening procedures for admission to such care and regarding the quality of care itself.

A survey of midwives in Quebec: what are their similarities and differences?

BACKGROUND: Until recently, Canada was the only industrialized country that had not legalized midwifery. In the province of Quebec the government adopted a law to evaluate midwifery in eight pilot projects before generalizing the practice. This study examined the similarities and differences among midwives in Quebec. METHODS: Using data from a 1991 mail survey, we compared 31 nurse-midwives, 12 professional midwives, and 27 lay midwives to assess professional background and opinions about selected maternity care issues and aspects of future midwifery practice, such as midwife training options, responsibilities, setting for midwifery care, relationship to other maternity caregivers, autonomy, and control over their profession. RESULTS: Midwives largely shared the same philosophy of care but had different viewpoints on two main professional aspects: compared with professional midwives and nurse-midwives, lay midwives preferred to deliver antepartum, intrapartum, and postpartum care at a client's home or an independent birthing center; like professional midwives, they rejected nursing as a prerequisite to midwifery training. Other interrelated personal, social, political, and legal factors were also associated with different beliefs. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the differences among the three groups, the process under way in Canada is to recognize a single profession of midwife. Creating a unified profession is a challenge that Canadian midwives with different backgrounds face in the 1990s.