A new midwifery primary care option

Hello!

I am Joy Johnston, and I am an independent midwife in Melbourne, Victoria [Australia]. This new blog is an addition to my villagemidwife blog, and my website.

I am one of the estimated 200 experienced homebirth midwives in this country who will lose our right to practise midwifery privately from 1 July next year, as a result of new legislation that mandates professional indemnity insurance.

I have set up Aitex Private Midwifery Services (APMS), as a transition from the model I have managed since 1993, working as a solo midwife, to whatever private midwifery services I am able to provide and coordinate after July 2010.

APMS has a dual focus: the birthing woman, and the midwife. APMS is a professional service which exists to provide one-to-one private midwifery care for women in pregnancy and birth, and to mentor and guide midwives in caseload midwifery for births in the home or hospital.

If you wonder why the title uses the word 'Aitex', this is the name of the family company that my husband Noel and I have managed since 1989. Aitex allows us to coordinate and share the resources, such as printers, computers, phones, website, and email addresses. Noel is a Veterinary scientist. He understands and fully supports my efforts to promote and protect health through working in harmony with natural, physiological processes in birthing and care of the newborn.