We attend labour and birth at home, at the Toronto Birth Centre, and in the hospital. It is the responsibility of each midwife to support choice of birthplace within the scope of practice of midwifery. It is also the midwife’s responsibility to plan care appropriately when contraindications to out-of-hospital birth arise.

Midwifery care for planned hospital births includes monitoring labour at home, transfer to the hospital late in active labour with first babies and in well established labour for subsequent births, and early discharge (usually within 4 hours after the birth) from the hospital, with postpartum care provided by your midwives at home.

The emphasis in midwifery care is on birth as a normal physiologic process and an important life event and in supporting client’s to make informed choices. During labour and delivery midwives use position change, hands-on comfort measures and emotional support to reduce the need for pain-relieving drugs. Although the use of technology and drugs is sometimes necessary and is always open to midwifery clients when needed, clients who plan to use birth technology routinely may find medical care a more appropriate choice.