Charm City Midwives
I spoke to Bayla who owns and is the midwife behind Charm City Midwives. She answered some questions for me to educate anyone who may be looking for a midwife.
What is different about the experience at Charm City Midwives verses an OB?
There is no waiting for your appointment. Once you arrive you are seen immediately. Appointments are 30-60 minutes. Charm City Midwives also holds group visit for a due date month, meaning you will meet with other who are delivering around the same time as you. These group meets are held 3 times during pregnancy at 24, 28, 32 weeks. I love this idea and it’s such a cool way to meet others who are going though the same experiences as you.
What can be expected at a first appointment with you? What types of things do you do in a typical checkup throughout pregnancy?
10 weeks is typically your first appointment. You would be referred out for an ultrasound and genetic testing. During your appointment some things you will go over are your diet, emotional status and your birth plan.
What type of things do you help do during labor?
During pre labor you are in contact with your midwife through phone calls or texts. They do recommend to have a doula. Once active labor starts they would set up emergency equipment and your birth space.
What type of postnatal care do you do?
The newborn exam, weight of baby, as well as returning the next day to weigh baby, PKU testing and standard testing they would do in a hospital. This would be in place of you having to go to your pediatrician in the days following your babies birth.
For mom they would do the post natal exams, and breastfeeding support.
Do you accept insurance?
Medicaid insurance, out of network
Is there anything that makes you different from other doulas/midwives in the area?
Bayla is a CNM (certified nurse midwife) meaning she can deliver twins and VBACs.
I also reached out to two clients who had used Charm City Midwives to find out about their experiences. These clients were not provided by Charm City Midwives.
These clients delivered in 11/2020 and 8/2020
How far along were you when you started using the practice?
Person A : 5 weeks
Person B: 3 months
What were your main reasons for choosing a midwife or doula?
Person A: I love the attention and holistic care that midwives provide.
Person B: I wanted a home birth
Was there a specific person at the practice you used?
Person A: Hannah
Person B: no
What did you LOVE about them?
Person A: She was so personable. I appreciated that she always asked me questions about my life and was open to conversation/discussing how it was impacting my pregnancy. She felt like a good friend by the end of the pregnancy.
Person B: Comprehensive care, birth education, individual attention, like I mattered
Were there any parts of your care that did not go as expected or you were disappointed about?
Person A: Not at all
Person B: sometimes they were elusive about giving advice or weighing in their opinions on a question, which made me feel a bit out of my depth with certain decisions. i do not know if a Western medical doctor would have been different or not
Anything else you would like to share?
Person B: I had a long labor and hospital/c-section transferee
I THEN ASKED THEM TO RATE CHARM CITY MIDWIVES ON THE FOLLOWING ON A SCALE FROM 1-10 WITH 1 BEING HIGHLY DISSATISFIED AND 10 BEING HIGHLY SATISFIED:
How easy was it to get an appointment?
Client 1: 10/10
Client 2: 8/10
How happy were you with the overall care?
Client 1: 10/10
Client 2: 9/10
How satisfied were you with the prenatal care?
Both clients scored 10/10
How happy were you with the support received while in labor?
Client 1: 10/10
Client 2: 9/10
How happy were you with the support received postpartum?
Client 1: 10/10
Client 2: 8/10
Did you feel listened to and like your concerns and needs were a priority throughout your care?
Both clients scored 10/10
