Views from a Midwife: Your birth experience is YOURS!

In honor of National Midwifery Week, we got in touch with one of our own Nurse Midwives to get a feel for Indiana’s largest Midwifery program!  Lisa Glazik has been with HealthNet over 7 years and LOVES her job! 

Why did you become a Nurse Midwife?

Lisa: I was always interested in women’s health.  When I had the chance to start shadowing other nurses in OB programs while at Illinois, I noticed that they were missing out on a BIG piece of a woman’s pregnancy, THE BIRTH! To spend almost an entire pregnancy with a patient and to not be in the room for that special moment made me feel as if I’d be missing on some closure in the process.

What is the most satisfying part of your job?

Lisa: Being a part of that special moment.  Seeing the culmination of teaching a mother about pregnancy, what to expect and healthy lifestyle choices is very rewarding.

What is the biggest challenge you face when dealing with a patient?

Lisa: When someone comes to us uneducated about healthy lifestyle choices, it makes it really hard to get them to make new ones.  Change is hard for EVERYONE, but learning about the changes that need to be made can be even harder.  It is a challenge to get the new information to sink in when a patient already has set habits.  But it is awesome to see them succeed!

What do like best about National Midwifery Week?

Lisa: I like Midwifery Week because I get a lot of questions directed my way about what exactly a midwife does.  I enjoy educating others, even some IN health care, and dispelling some of the old stereotypes that some may have about midwives.

If you could sum up your goal, in one sentence, to make sure a pregnancy is a success, what would it be?

Lisa: I would tell the mother-to-be, “Your birth experience is YOURS, I am here to give you THAT experience in the best way possible with a healthy mom and a healthy child as an end result.

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HealthNet Midwifery Services is the largest midwifery practice in the state, assisting in the birth of more than 2,436 babies each year at IU Health Methodist. The program’s 23 nurse midwives work with the 11 OB/GYN physicians and 4 women’s health nurse practitioners on staff to provide prenatal care, postpartum care, well-woman care, family planning and more for women at HealthNet’s six community health centers and one OB/GYN care center. The program celebrates its 21th year this year.

To learn more about Nurse Midwives at HealthNet, stay tuned to our Twitter feed and Facebook page to get statistics and tidbits all week!

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