After a $680,000 donation from the province, UBC will create a program that puts internationally-trained midwives on the fast-track to being able to practice in B.C.
The program, which will bring eight internationally-trained midwives to UBC each year, will open its doors to the first four midwives in January 2016. This comes after the province provided $2.7 million in funding for the program to increase the training capacity of UBC's Midwife program from 10 students to 20 students in 2012.
Once accepted into the program, the students will be individually assessed and matched with training that best fits the skills and knowledge they gained abroad.
After completing a three-month online course, six weeks of in-person training and a practicum, they will also need to complete the Canadian Midwifery Registration Examination in order to become licensed as a midwife in B.C.
According to the UBC Midwifery website, applicants must have “a degree or equivalent in midwifery,” and must have “attended at least 60 births over a five-year period in a jurisdiction where midwifery is regulated.”
Ganga Joliceur, the executive director of the Midwives Association of B.C., said that, with the growing demand for midwives in the province, this change will help make a difference in the structure of natal care services for years to come.
“This new program will provide women and families with greater choice and access to quality maternity-care services in urban and rural communities throughout B.C.,” said Jolicoeur in a media release.
While midwifery standards can vary in countries around the world, UBC’s program heavily emphasizes ethical theory and practical training.
A 2006 Maternity Experiences Survey also shows that midwives provide a benefit to both women and children -- births supervised by midwives were 44 per cent less likely to require an induced labour and 8.9 times more likely to require only medication-free pain relief. When the same study was conducted in 2009, it also found that over 9.8 per cent of B.C. mothers received care from a midwife at some time during their pregnancy.
Michelle Butler, director of UBC's Midwifery Program, also said that the experience will help with the growing demand for midwives that the province has seen in recent years.
According to Butler, midwives in Canada are responsible not just for childbirth, but also for the holistic care of mothers to ensure that they receive “not just [the] physical care, but also psychological and social care," throughout and after the pregnancy.
“This pathway also will help diversify the profession, bringing in individuals with cultural backgrounds that reflect B.C.’s immigrant and second-generation communities,” said Butler.
With only 20 midwives per year graduating from UBC’s current midwifery program and a lack of programs dedicated specifically to midwifery in many Canadian provinces, midwives continue to be in high demand.