What you can Expect From Your Care With Us
PHILOSOPHY OF CARE
Our care is based on the understanding that pregnancy and birth is a healthy progression through the life cycle. We uphold pregnancy and birth as normal physiological processes, and profound events in a person’s life.
The key philosophies that we uphold are continuity of care, informed choice, choice of birth setting and collaboration with other health professionals.
Continuity of care is a philosophy and a process; it enables us to develop a relationship with you and provide personalized, safe care.
As your maternity providers, we recognize a pregnant individual as the primary decision maker; we promote shared responsibility between your family and other professionals involved in your care.
We encourage informed choice by providing complete, relevant and objective information throughout the childbearing cycle in a supportive manner. This enables you to develop understanding, responsibility and autonomy in your and your baby’s health care.
We are committed to providing you information regarding your choice of birthplace as well.
We believe strongly that all people have a right to accessible, comprehensive, respectful care that honours their individuality. We have a special interest in reaching out to families who may find themselves marginalized by society based on their socio-economic, cultural, religious or ethnic backgrounds, or gender identity/sexual orientation. We appreciate the role that our team can play in honouring and celebrating diversity, and creating connections and community among families.
We are committed as a practice to working towards the decolonization of birth. We have all accessed Indigenous Cultural Safety training, recognizing that cultural humility and the process of learning about cultural safety will be ongoing.
Fundamental to our maternity care is the respect and support provided to each individual, so that they may give birth safely with power and dignity.
MODEL OF PRACTICE
In British Columbia, maternity care with a midwife or family doctor is a publicly funded health service. Anyone with a valid Carecard or BC Services Card can receive maternity care at no personal cost.
Our model of practice was developed in BC and offers autonomous, community-based primary care, incorporating the principles of continuity of care, informed choice, choice of birth setting, collaborative care, and evidence-based practice.
CONTINUITY OF CARE
Continuity of care is both a philosophy and a process. It allows us to develop a relationship with you over time, with the purpose of providing responsive, individualized, and safe care. There will be a team of providers caring for you; you will have opportunity to meet us all if you wish, prior to your birth.
We clearly document all of our visits, ensuring that current information for each client is available to every maternity provider. We communicate together as a team frequently about our clients and their care. We do regular chart review to make sure we are all up to date on any relevant issues or special considerations. Aside from our own individual and collective commitment to knowing our clients well, our care is guided by the BC College of Nurses and Midwives, and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC, which are the regulatory bodies that provide standards for the BC maternity model of practice.
INFORMED CHOICE
We view you, as the parent(s), to be the most appropriate people to make decisions regarding your care options. We respect your right to make informed choices by providing objective information in a supportive manner. We always allow adequate time for discussion during your pregnancy, and can facilitate the ongoing exchange of current, evidence-based knowledge that is relevant to your unique needs.
CHOICE OF BIRTH SETTING
The right of a person to make an informed choice about the setting for birth is a principle deeply respected by us as your providers. We look forward to providing you with information to help you make an informed decision about where to have your baby, at home (or another out of hospital location for families who live outside the Comox Valley), or in the Comox Valley Hospital. We’ll discuss with you the benefits and disadvantages of both birthplaces for you as an individual, and you’ll decide what’s right for you. We will inform you of our current capacity to provide home birth services.
It’s worth knowing that both BC-specific and international homebirth research reveals that planned homebirth is as safe as hospital birth, for clients with healthy pregnancies and access to a care provider trained in homebirth.
Whether at home or in hospital, every birth will be attended by a minimum of two qualified care providers (two midwives or doctors at a homebirth, and a midwife or doctor and a maternity nurse at the hospital).
COLLABORATIVE CARE
To promote the best possible care for your and your baby’s health, we’ll offer collaboration or consultation with other health professionals if indicated. As primary care providers, we provide education, counselling and advocacy to support your individual needs. We enjoy collegial and mutually respectful relationships within the community of care providers, resources and services supporting families in the Comox Valley.