Midwives: Care during pregnancy and delivery

Midwives: Care during pregnancy and delivery
What is a midwife’s role during pregnancy and delivery?

In Quebec, women can choose a midwife to provide their prenatal, labour, and postnatal care. These health care professionals offer personalized care, establishing a relationship with the mother-to-be that is based on equality and collaboration.

The practice of midwifery

A midwife is a health care professional who primarily provides care and services during pregnancy, delivery, and the first 6 weeks after birth. To be cared for by a midwife, a woman must be healthy, and her pregnancy must be progressing normally. For example, women with high blood pressure, hyperthyroidism, or a multiple pregnancy cannot be cared for by a midwife.

Midwives are members of a professional order that ensures the protection of the public, and aspiring midwives must complete a three-year university program.

Midwives therefore have the necessary knowledge to provide women with safe care, quickly detect potential complications, and respond appropriately to emergency situations.

They can also prescribe any medications or tests that mom or baby may require while under their care. If complications arise, the midwife will consult a doctor for a second opinion. They will refer their client to the doctor if the situation falls outside their scope of practice.

Midwives view pregnancy and childbirth as normal physiological processes and defining moments in women’s lives. Their approach respects pregnant women’s choices and takes into account their overall well-being (e.g., their physical and mental health, emotions, and values).

Midwives work in teams to provide pregnant women with care when they need it, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. During prenatal care, expectant mothers have the opportunity to meet and build relationships with three or four midwives who ensure consistent and continuous support. The on-call midwife will be present during the delivery, assisted by a colleague.

Parents being cared for by a midwife can choose to deliver at a birthing centre, in a hospital, or at home. Their approach will be the same regardless of the birth location. In all cases, midwifery services are covered by the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec.

No matter where a mother chooses to give birth, their midwife will maintain the same approach and have all the necessary equipment, supplies, and medications. This means that, should there be an emergency requiring a doctor’s care, the midwife will have everything they need to stabilize the mom or newborn’s condition until the doctor takes over.

Finding and being cared for by a midwife

If you are interested in midwifery care, you must first submit a request at your local birthing centre. You will then be invited to an information meeting with a midwife, which will be held at the birthing centre prior to the start of care. At your first appointment, the midwife will assess your eligibility for midwifery care.

If you began your prenatal care with a doctor, you can transfer to a midwife. However, you should contact your birthing centre as soon as possible to check your eligibility and if there are still openings for midwifery care.

In general, moms-to-be have 10 to 12 prenatal visits with a midwife. Appointments are scheduled once a month to start, then become more frequent in the final weeks of pregnancy. Each appointment lasts approximately 50 minutes.

Your partner or anyone else can come with you to these appointments, including kids. Most consultations take the form of a conversation during which you can discuss any concerns with your midwife.

For example, you could talk about nutrition, common discomforts during pregnancy, or available tests. Your midwife will also help you prepare for childbirth by discussing available options, among other things. Midwifery teams also offer prenatal classes.

To ensure that the pregnancy is progressing as expected, the midwife will perform clinical examinations and may order tests and lab work, as well as ultrasounds. She can also collect certain samples. These samples are analyzed by a hospital laboratory, which then sends the results back to her.

Pregnancy monitoring with a midwife takes place at a birthing centre or at a clinic. However, the choice of birth location will be made during the pregnancy, with the help of your midwife. About 75% of births overseen by a midwife take place at birthing centres, 20% occur at home, and 5% occur in hospitals.

Midwifery services in Quebec

Quebec has approximately 30 birthing centres or midwifery services across all regions. Although access to these services remains limited outside the major urban centres, plans for additional birthing centres are in the works.

Childbirth with a midwife

At the first signs of labour, contact the midwife indicated on the on-call schedule provided in advance by your care team. Your midwife will then meet you at the agreed-upon birth location to assess the progression of labour.

Midwives don’t give epidurals. If you would like to have an epidural during labour, you must be transferred to a hospital centre. However, during prenatal visits, midwives help their clients prepare for childbirth by addressing the topic of pain management.

She will ensure that your labour goes smoothly and that both you and your baby are well cared for. Your midwife will work with you to find the most comfortable positions and make sure you eat and drink enough throughout your labour. During this time, you may decide to listen to music, take a bath, or move around freely.

The second midwife arrives just before the birth—that is, when you begin to push—to assist her colleague during the second stage of labour. A birth attendant may also be present to provide additional support.

If a complication arises during labour, your midwife will handle it herself or, if necessary, transfer your care to a medical team. The two main reasons for transferring care are prolonged labour and a request for an epidural.

Postpartum care

Your midwife will stay with you and your baby for three hours following the birth to make sure you are both doing well. She will then sign the discharge papers and, if you didn’t have a home birth, you will be able to return home at this point. If you deliver at a birthing centre, you can opt to stay there for up to 24 hours if you would like to or if you or baby require special care. During the first week after birth, your midwife will make at least three home visits to ensure everything is progressing normally for both mother and baby. She will also provide breastfeeding support. In addition to these home visits, you can expect two more appointments at the birthing centre. Midwives provide 6 weeks of postpartum care.

Birthing centre delivery

Birthing centres are part of the health care system, but are not located in a hospital complex. They provide a cozy and welcoming atmosphere.

They’re designed to recreate a home-like environment. Family, children, and loved ones are welcome there. Many birthing centres have a playroom for kids, as well as a kitchen and living room for parents.

Birthing centres offer all the necessary conditions for a safe delivery. They have all the equipment and medications required to respond to emergencies. In addition, they are fully prepared to transfer clients by ambulance to a hospital if necessary. If you need to be transferred, your midwife will accompany you and your baby to the hospital and continue to care for you until the medical team on site takes over.

Home birth

If you choose to give birth at home, your midwife will provide you with a form to sign, containing all the information you’ll need to make an informed choice. This document will cover the details, advantages, and risks of each birth location. It will also describe situations requiring transfer to a hospital, emergency measures in the event of complications, and the criteria for transportation from your home to the hospital. Please note that your home must be accessible to paramedics and located within a reasonable distance of a hospital.

Women choose to give birth at home for a variety of reasons: comfort and privacy, the sense of safety and trust they feel at home, a desire to provide a welcoming environment for their baby, and the fact that they don’t have to move from one place to another before and after giving birth.

Around the 36th week of pregnancy, your midwife will make a home visit to bring the necessary supplies and check that the home environment is safe. She will suggest adjustments if warranted.

When attending to a home birth, midwives have all the necessary equipment and medications to respond in an emergency. They have an agreement with the nearest hospital to ensure that you or your baby can be transferred quickly if necessary.

An Ontario study concluded that planned, midwife-assisted home births are safe and may even result in fewer interventions for healthy women.

Hospital birth with a midwife

When you are being cared for by a midwife, you can still choose to have your baby at a hospital, though this is not a common choice. When you go into labour, you will meet your midwife at the hospital, where you’ll be given a room. The hospital’s medical team will not be present during labour unless the midwife requests it due to complications. In most cases, the new mom and her midwife leave the hospital 3 to 4 hours after delivery. Your postnatal follow-up and visits will take place at your home.

Things to keep in mind

  • A midwife is a health care professional who primarily provides care and services during pregnancy, delivery, and the postpartum period.
  • A midwife can attend a delivery at a birthing centre, in a hospital, or at home, depending on the parents’ preference.
  • To be cared for by a midwife, a woman must be healthy and her pregnancy must be progressing normally.
Naître et grandir

Scientific review: Émilie Brunet-Pagé, midwife and professor at UQTR
Research and copywriting:The Naître et grandir team
Updated: June 2026

Photo: Getty Images/Newman Studio

Resources and references

Resources

References

Note: The links to other websites are not updated regularly, and some URLs may have changed since publication. If a link is no longer valid, please use search engines to find the relevant information.

Share