North Carolina Friends of Midwives is a grassroots organization of midwifery advocates dedicated to promoting, supporting, and protecting midwifery in North Carolina. We advocate the preservation of midwife-attended births, in accordance with the Midwives Model of Care™ including those at home and in freestanding birth centers. Women in remote areas are therefore left with neither an obstetrician
to assist her in birth nor a nearby hospital in which to birth her baby. In North Carolina midwives offer care in urban as well as rural areas and to all socioeconomic groups. Midwives are highly trained and experienced in assisting pregnant and birthing women. Many studies have shown midwifery and homebirth to be at least as safe as doctor assisted birthing in hospitals for the vast majority of mothers and babies. It is essential that midwives be free to practice openly and without harassment in the state of North Carolina. It is also essential that the community recognizes the benefits offered by midwifery care and the services midwives offer to North Carolina families. We represent families seeking access to independent midwives and work together with the North Carolina Midwives Alliance to promote legislative issues important to midwives and the families they serve. Our members are comprised of families, midwives, students and out-of-hospital birth advocates. In 1997 a group of midwifery advocates recognized a need for public endorsement of the midwife and out-of-hospital birth and so formed North Carolina Friends of Midwives. Since then we have organized efforts to pass a Certified Professional Midwife bill, held numerous talks, and educated the public with our printed materials.
