About
About
Our Clinic
We specifically serve the diverse communities of East York, Thorncliffe Park, Don Mills, and East Scarborough. Our catchment area is Steeles Ave south to Lake Ontario and east to Port Union Road and west to Kipling Avenue. We do take clients beyond this catchment area as long as it is within the Greater Toronto Area. We have midwives who speak English, Arabic, French, Portuguese and Spanish. Our administrators speak English, Tagalog, Urdu, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil and some French.
Our hospital admitting privileges are with Michael Garron Hospital. For each of our clients we offer a complete course of care including regular prenatal care, labour and birth either in hospital, birth centre or home setting, and six weeks of postpartum follow-up for both the client and the newborn.
If during this course of care there are clinical issues which are outside of our scope of practice, we will consult with the appropriate specialist. For any non-pregnancy related medical issues, clients are expected to seek care with their other health care providers.
Our Partners
Midwifery Care
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Prenatal Care
Your first visit will usually be between 8 and 10 weeks of pregnancy. Your visits will occur once a month until 28 weeks, every two weeks from 28-36 weeks, and once a week from 36 weeks until your baby’s birth.
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Labour & Birth
One of your midwives will be with you throughout active labour. A second midwife will come towards the end of your labour and both will be there for the birth of your baby and the 2-4 hours after your birth.
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Postpartum
After the birth your midwives will stay with you for 2-4 hours. They will make sure you and your baby are both doing well, check your vitals regularly, assist with breastfeeding, and do a complete physical exam of your baby.
Our Care Model
There are two different ways our midwives work: in pairs or in pods.
The Pair Model
In the pair model, you will be assigned two midwives. Usually you will meet your Coordinating Midwife for the first few appointments to coordinate tests, to review your medical history, and to do any exams that you require. After this you will go back and forth for the remainder of the pregnancy so that you know both of your midwives well.
Your two midwives will share responsibility for your care. Whichever one is on call when you go into labour will be the primary midwife at your birth. In the six weeks following the birth of your baby, you and your baby will be cared for by your two midwives.
The Pod Model
In the pod model, you are assigned a Coordinating Midwife who works in a team of three midwives. You will usually meet with your Coordinating Midwife for the first few appointments to coordinate tests, to review your medical history, and to do any exams that you require. After this, you will alternate in meeting the other midwives on your team before your due date. The pod model allows our midwives to have more time off to focus on other work in the midwifery community or to spend time with their families.
The pod midwives work in a rotation. They work for two months and then take a month off so that there are always two midwives looking after you. Your on-call midwives will address any needs and concerns you may be experiencing. During your pregnancy, you will mostly meet with your coordinating midwife and your second midwife.
Whichever midwife is on call when you go into labour will be the primary midwife at your birth. Depending on when you have your baby, you will be cared for by one, two or all three of your midwives in the six weeks after you have your baby.
Meet our Team of Midwives
Our Clinic
When you come for an appointment at our clinic, your midwive is usually off call. Your other midwife is on call and will attend births and home visits. Occasionally, midwives need to do some clinic work while they are still on call.
If you have an appointment that is booked while your midwife is on call, that appointment maybe cancelled if your midwife is at a birth. You will be called to reschedule your visit as soon as possible. We appreciate your patience and understanding in these situations.
Using Pagers
All of our midwives carry pagers to facilitate quick and personal care to our clients. You will be instructed to page your coordinating midwife if any urgent concerns arise during pregnancy, labour, and postpartum. One of the midwives from your pair or pod will call you back to address your concerns.
When you have a student involved in your care you may also be given the student’s pager number. Your midwives will instruct you when to page the midwife directly and when to page your student midwife.
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