It is quite possible that we will meet virtually (as the Spring Class is currently doing) but this format still offers benefits of the onsite version–group contact in a condensed and demonstration-rich format.
Heart & Hands Midwifery Intensives
Elizabeth Davis, Director/Instructor
Purpose | Who May Attend | Format | Course Content | Skills & Demonstrations
Schedule, Fees & Registration | Upon Completion | The Instructor
PURPOSE
Heart & Hands Midwifery Intensives were originally founded by Elizabeth Davis in 1982. The class was developed at the request of a group of birth assistants seeking to acquire practical midwifery skills. Over the years and by demand, the class evolved to include basic introductory information and emphasis on the intuitive, interpersonal skills essential to effective midwifery care.
The purpose of the HEART & HANDS MIDWIFERY INTENSIVES course is to provide students with a strong and integrated foundation in the art and science of midwifery.
WHO MAY PARTICIPATE
HEART & HANDS MIDWIFERY INTENSIVES are ideal for those interested in discovering their unique relationship to the art and practice of midwifery. Students in the health field, psychotherapists, nutritionists, body-workers—anyone who desires to empower mothers/gestational parents and their supporters in the act of giving birth is welcome to attend.
The class is designed to accommodate students at various levels of sophistication. No prerequisites—beginners are always welcome!
FORMAT
HEART & HANDS coursework is available in onsite and offsite format (see next paragraph for offsite details). The coursework encourages students to incorporate personal experience in their learning process. Onsite, we work in circle, in an open, egalitarian fashion. Groups are small: close personal attention enables students to integrate theory with practice as they share with their peers. At all times, Heart & Hands students are expected to work with respect for diversity of culture, belief, and sexual orientation/gender identification.
The offsite HEART & HANDS beginning coursework is comprised of ten modules that combine academic material with many self-directed hands-on activities featured in the onsite class.
COURSE CONTENT
- History and Politics of Midwifery
- Prenatal Care and Complications
- Counseling and Communication Skills
- Intuition, Boundaries in Caregiving, Healing the Healer
- Nutritional Counseling
- Sexuality in the Childbearing Cycle, Sexual Abuse Issues
- Facilitating Labor and Supporting Physiologic Birth
- Labor Complications and Transport
- Perineal Assessment and Repair
- Newborn Complications and Neonatal Testing
- Postpartum Care, Breastfeeding, and Emotional Adjustments
- Homeopathy and Herbs in Pregnancy and Birth
- Licensing in California and National Certification (CPM)
SKILLS AND DEMONSTRATIONS
Beginning onsite students have opportunity for hands-on practice in routine prenatal assessments of blood pressure, pulse, fundal height, fetal palpation and heart auscultation, pelvimetry, and nutritional analysis. Other practices include intramuscular injections, suturing, cervical examination (using simulation models), and rebozo techniques/hand maneuvers to address posterior arrest or asynclitism in labor.
Demonstrations are made of hand maneuvers for deep transverse arrest, compound presentation, shoulder dystocia, manual removal of the placenta (in emergency), and basic newborn exam. Guidelines for breech birth are also demonstrated.
Offsite students will find, whenever feasible, instructions in their modules for self-directed, hands-on practice of the skills cited above.
SCHEDULE, FEES AND REGISTRATION
Onsite course meets eight weekend days in Sebastopol CA (an hour north of San Francisco). Tuition is $1775, payable with a $525 non-refundable, non-transferable deposit; balance payable in per class installments by date of course completion. Missed classes can be made up in any subsequent series (space permitting) at cost commensurate with current fees for the series.
Upon completion of the beginning course, students may enroll in the onsite Advanced Workshops, which cost $725 and meet three weekend days in Sebastopol CA. The advanced coursework is also available in offsite format.
To register for the onsite beginning course, send your contact info (including email), a brief, birth-related bio (or resume), and $525 deposit (in check or money order made out to Elizabeth Davis), to 3201 Burnside Rd, Sebastopol CA 95472. I will email a confirmation letter with all the details, including schedule of payments, required textbooks and their cost, and what to bring to class.
Offsite fees for the beginning course are $1775, payable in advance only. Register by sending this fee (in check or money order made out to Elizabeth Davis), to 3201 Burnside Rd, Sebastopol CA 95472, along with a brief, birth-related bio (or resume), and a brief self-assessment of your ability to do correspondence learning. I will email the modules in Word format, which you will also be able to access through the NMI Student Portal. Again, textbooks are a separate cost; please contact me for details.
Offsite students in either the beginning or advanced courses may choose to attend selected classes at the Sebastopol location on a drop-in basis. Certain classes are especially rich in hands-on practice; contact me for details on schedule and cost. Fees for drop-in classes are payable in advance; space is not guaranteed until fees are paid. Once space is confirmed, fees are non-refundable and non-transferable.
Questions? elizabeth@elizabethdavis.com (707) 695-6520
UPON COMPLETION
Students seeking further instruction may wish to enroll in the National Midwifery Institute, Inc. (a MEAC accredited program recognized by the CA Medical Board) that incorporates the Heart & Hands course work. Enrollees in NMI receive full credit for previously completed Heart & Hands course work, and all tuition paid to Elizabeth Davis is deducted from the initial down payment.
Academic credit for Heart & Hands coursework has also been granted by National College of Midwifery, Birthwise Midwifery School, and Midwives College of Utah (by portfolio process). For students applying to these or other midwifery programs, letters of recommendation/class syllabus are available on request.
Additionally, this course covers core curriculum and many basic skills of Midwife Assistant Training.
THE INSTRUCTOR
ELIZABETH DAVIS, C.P.M., B.A. has been a midwife, educator, and reproductive health care specialist for 40 years.
She served as Pacific Regional Representative and the Education Committee chair for the Midwives Alliance of North America, President of Midwifery Education Accreditation Council, and consultant to the State of California’s Alternative Birthing Methods Study. She holds a degree in Holistic Maternity Care, and is NARM certified. She is co-founder of the National Midwifery Institute, Inc.
Her books include:
Orgasmic Birth: Your Guide to a Safe, Satisfying and Pleasurable Birth Experience
Heart & Hands: A Midwife’s Guide to Pregnancy and Birth (now in its 5th edition)
The Rhythms of Women’s Desire: How Female Sexuality Unfolds at Every Stage of Life
The Women’s Wheel of Life