Characteristics of nurse-midwife patients and visits, 1991.
OBJECTIVE
This study describes the patient populations served by and visits made to certified nurse-midwives (CNMs) in the United States.


METHODS
Prospective data on 16,729 visits were collected from 369 CNMs randomly selected from a 1991 population survey. Population estimates were derived from a multistage survey design with probability sampling.


RESULTS
We estimated that approximately 5.4 million visits were made to nearly 3000 CNMs nationwide in 1991. Most visits involved maternity care, although fully 20% were for care outside the maternity cycle. Patients considered vulnerable to poor access or outcomes made 7 of every 10 visits.


CONCLUSIONS
Nurse-midwives substantially contribute to the health care of women nationwide, especially for vulnerable populations.
Paine
L L
LL
Department of Maternal and Child Health, Boston University School of Public Health, MA 02118, USA. lpaine@bu.edu
Lang
J M
JM
Strobino
D M
DM
Johnson
T R
TR
DeJoseph
J F
JF
Declercq
E R
ER
Gagnon
D R
DR
Scupholme
A
A
Ross
A
A
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002568:Certification; D018588:Fee-for-Service Plans; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D009721:Nurse Midwives / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009819:Office Visits / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012456:Salaries and Fringe Benefits; D012494:Sampling Studies; D014481:United States