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“We interpreted these better birth outcomes as being the result of the prolonged contact and extra support given by midwives to pregnant women with difficult backgrounds,” said Muhajarine, U of S professor in community health and epidemiology.

The researchers analyzed data from almost 58,000 low-income women who used midwifery care in B.C. between 2005 and 2012. Funded by U of S and UBC, the study has been published in the BMJ Open journal (formerly called the British Medical Journal) and presented nationally and internationally.

Previous research in B.C. showed that midwives tend to spend more time with soon-to-be mothers — an average of between 30 and 60 minutes — while physicians’ appointments in B.C. last around 20 minutes.

While midwives, general practitioners and obstetricians are all qualified to provide safe care, each provide a different type of care that women can choose based on their preference.

“Midwives can provide a personalized and comprehensive care, which allows them to address pregnant women’s adverse health and social conditions such as depression, use of substances, and violence,” said McRae, who is now doing post-doctoral research at UBC.

McRae and Muhajarine have found that low-income women with low-to-moderate-risk pregnancies under midwifery care were 34 per cent less likely to deliver low birth weight babies and almost 30 per cent less likely to deliver small-for-gestational-age babies compared to general physicians’ patients.