Greetings!

Welcome to the August 2012 NACPM Newsletter!   We know you are very busy with work, family and summer, but we hope you will read on through the important news below. We welcome your comments and ideas as you read through this issue.  Please write to admin@nacpm.org.

 

It is with great sadness - and much gratitude - that we bid farewell to two beloved NACPM board members.



Dolly Browder is a founding member and stalwart Secretary of the NACPM board since 2002. Dolly's unwavering commitment to and understanding of the critical need for a professional association dedicated to the development of the CPM profession have played a significant role over many years in NACPM's ability to work towards the mission of contributing to a new era in maternity care. We will miss you, Dolly, and we are forever grateful to you.




We also bid farewell to Gretchen Spicer, a dedicated member of the board since 2008. Gretchen has brought a passion for social justice issues in midwifery to the board, and a commitment to expanding all women's access to CPM services, especially women of color, and to growing diversity in the midwifery workforce. Gretchen will stay on in 2013 as an immediate past board member to advise the board on these issues. We are grateful for your service, Gretchen.

We hope you are enjoying the eNews reports from the CPM Symposium! So far you have received Midwifery in the United States - A National Picture, and Health Professionals for a New Century. Watch for Caring for All Women later in August. A total of 15 reports through the remainder of 2012 will each examine a different set of symposium topics, including links to symposium videos and presentation materials, updates from our speakers, progress from the workgroups, news and resources, all archived on the Symposium website. Comments and suggestions from our readers will be featured in keeping with the spirit of the symposium - learning and growing together!

NACPM is establishing a Fellowship Program, offering unique opportunities for CPMs to engage more deeply in the work of their National Association. Each Fellowship will be oriented around a specific board project and be overseen and supported by a designated board member, offering support for current midwifery leaders in particular focus areas, while mentoring future leaders in midwifery.

We welcome Neva Gerke of Washington State as the new NACPM Communications Fellow, and Annique Sampson of Vermont as the new NACPM Policy Fellow, assisting with the work of the MAMA Campaign. Watch soon for future opportunities to apply for NACPM Fellowships. If you are interested in a Fellowship, please contact Susan Smartt Cook and describe your area of interest.

Along with our sister organizations, NACPM is painfully aware of the unconscionable birth outcome disparities that are suffered so disproportionally by women of color in the United States. The invited speakers and courageous conversations at the CPM Symposium brought new focus and resolve to NACPM to do our part to address these disparities and the racism that is their root cause in our society, our health care system, our midwifery institutions and in ourselves.

NACPM understands that there can be no quick fixes, and that we must make a commitment to working in our own sphere - our professional association, and to supporting the work of other stakeholders and partnering with them to make a difference.

We commit to addressing racism on an individual, board, and organizational level; to engaging women of color in NACPM leadership; to partnering with other organizations and individuals to address barriers and challenges and expand access to education; to ensuring cultural sensitivity, versatility, humility and safety as core competencies in midwifery care; and to continue our national policy work to expand access for all women to the care of CPMs. Please read the full NACPM statement here.

 

As a first step in fulfilling NACPM's commitment to including the voices of women of color in all aspects of NACPM leadership and to building faith and partnership with the community of midwives of color, the Board has expanded its number of Directors from five to seven. These two new board positions will be filled by appointment of the Board with two women of color, who will then be able to run for re-election if they desire after their appointed terms are fulfilled. Please watch for an eNews Bulletin later this month for introductions to the women who will fill these two new board appointments.

Best wishes to you,

NACPM Board of Directors