Explained by the Nova Scotia Health Authority as a staffing shortage, 22 expecting mothers in the Antigonish region were told in Dec. that midwife services were being suspended. The Association of Nova Scotia Midwives says structural issues in the region are the cause of one midwife being on leave and the other, just recently recruited, leaving. The president of the association and a midwife working at the IWK in Halifax believes that the problem in Antigonish, as was a problem prior to the service’s collapse and reboot, is when midwives are micromanaged in a shift work model by an administrator. She explains midwives' relationships with clients have them offering services at home and answering calls late at night, which, in turn, requires flexibility and support from the hospital.
NBHC Sustainability