Midwives on Screen

New!

The Doctors, a spin off of the Dr. Phill show, is discussing home birth for a upcoming show on birthing options. Write in for a chance to get a midwife on the show!

Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein Thank Midwives

The following video was shown at the 2008 ACNM Annual Meeting in Boston.

New! An Interview with Cara Muhlhahn

The Red Carpet Premier of The Business of Being Born.

At its red carpet premiere in New York City, The Business of Being Born cast midwives into the public eye. The film is a collaborative effort between Executive Producer Ricki Lake, Director Abby Epstein, and a smattering of health care practitioners, including several certified nurse-midwives.

From left to right: Mairi Breen Rothman, CNM, ACNM Professional Services Consultant; Leslie Ludka, CNM, ACNM Senior Technical Advisor; and Lorrie Kline Kaplan, ACNM Executive Director attended the premier of The Business of Being Born on January 9 in New York City.	Cara Muhlhahn, CNM (far left) and Executive Producer Ricki Lake (2nd to right) meet with ACNM staff at the premier of The Business of Being Born.

Front and center in the film is ACNM member Cara Muhlhahn, CNM (read an interview with Cara). Film researchers also use information from ACNM to promote birth as a natural life process rather than a potential medical emergency.

Although it may not cover all the details of midwifery, the film is a huge publicity opportunity for ACNM and its members. Nurse-midwives at ACNM’s national office give a thumbs-up to the variety of health care professionals interviewed on screen. And they appreciate the fundamental message of the film: Trust the birth process.

In the News

Check out media interviews with Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein. Their message is to celebrate midwives and normal birth.

Movie Reviews

Information For Women

Direct your clients, friends, and family to myMidwife.org's page containing information about Midwives in the Media and tips for "What to know before you go."

Read the ACNM Press Release

ACNM Applauds Release of The Business of Being Born (January 15, 2008)

Tell Us What You Think
ACNM wants to know what its members think about The Business of Being Born. If you’ve seen the film, send us your feedback at midwivesonscreen@acnm.org .

Member Feedback
A letter one ACNM member sent to the film's producers:

This is my third time seeing this wonderful movie, and every time I’ve been struck with the feeling that something important is missing. I don’t think it’s missing because you meant to leave it out, I think it’s missing because you probably didn’t find it. What’s missing is what I do.

I am a local midwife with an independent private practice. I help women to have wonderful and truly empowering births in the plain old labor and delivery unit of our community hospital. You were right to show the problems with what is happening in most of the labor and delivery units of hospitals in America. And you were right to show how fantastic it can be to have your baby in a birthing center or at home. I’d like to add that I know how rare it is, but midwifery is alive and well in the hospital closest to where we are all sitting right now, 7 minutes away at Phelps Memorial in Sleepy Hollow.

I’d also like to say that we have a very strong and supportive birth community (half of this theater is filled with my colleagues in the Hudson Valley Birth Network) including some very supportive physicians and hospital administrators.

This didn’t happen by accident. It took a lot of gentle but persistent hard work. I hope that your movie will inspire many people to get involved in their communities to make these kinds of changes. Most women prefer to birth in a hospital, and we need to provide a safe, nurturing, and empowering way to do that. I know it’s hard to find, but I’m here to say that it’s right here in our community, and I am privileged to be a part of it.

Thank you.

Kathy Herron, CNM
Full Circle Women’s Health
White Plains, NY

Action Alert: Private Practice
The new health drama on ABC features a student nurse-midwife character. While ACNM staff are thrilled to see a student midwife, male at that, on a prime time show, we are concerned that he seems to be precepted by a physician rather than a midwife, and that there is a noticeable absence of nurses on the show. Visit the Center for Nursing Advocacy for more information about the show and resources for writing a letter to the producers.