HEART & HANDS MIDWIFERY
92B De Lautour Rd, Gisborne
Holistic Midwifery Care You Can Trust
MEET BRIAR & COLLEEN!
Kia ora and congratulations on your pregnancy!
Heart & Hands Midwifery believes pregnancy, birth, and becoming a parent are normal but significant events in your life. We feel privileged to share this journey with the whanau we care for.
The experience of pregnancy and birth has evolved over the years, especially in today’s modern era. We believe that the need for caring, sensitive and knowledgeable support during this time is important.
We see every pregnancy and birth as a unique experience and as midwives, we feel honoured to be able to contribute our expertise to supporting women and whanau in the Gisborne/Tairawhiti area.
We support births in Gisborne Maternity and also are passionate supporters of homebirth for well women with normal pregnancies.
SERVICES
Every family is unique, so we offer a flexible approach, personalized for each birthing experience. Regardless of what you choose, we will dive into your beliefs and expectations around labour and birth. Together, we will explore your physical and emotional strengths and limitations to ensure you’re completely prepared. Please get in touch to learn more about booking with Briar or Colleen.
LABOUR & BIRTH
Heart & Hands Midwifery offers labour and birth care in your place of choice- either our wonderful local Puawai Aroha Maternity Unit (Gisborne Hospital) or in your home.
Through our antenatal care we will have endeavoured to ensure you have the confidence, skills, and support to have the labour and birth you hope for. We provide midwifery care once you are in established labour and bring with us the skills and confidence to support normal, physiological birth, and the knowledge to identify when labour and birth isn't going quite to plan. To promote safe outcomes responsive to the situation, we work in partnership with the hospital midwives and specialist Obstetricians as needed.
POSTNATAL SUPPORT
From our initial meeting to all the way through your pregnancy and birth, we take the time to get to know you, your concerns and your needs. We provide supportive, empowering care as you transition into becoming a parent.
We promote gentle parenting approaches and support your skills and knowledge as you learn to breastfeed or give advice if you choose to formula feed.
On average most parents can expect at least five home visits by your midwife to check on both mother and baby’s progress. Discharge from your LMC is normally somewhere between week 4-6 when you will be offered to be handed over to a Well Child Provider such as Plunket or Turanga Health for ongoing care.
MIDWIFERY CARE
Midwifery care in NZ is free for all eligible whanau. This care starts from booking around 8-10 weeks then continues throughout your pregnancy with appointments around 15-16 weeks, 21-22 weeks, 25-26 weeks, 29-30 weeks, then fortnightly until 36-37 weeks, then weekly until birth. Care is provided during labour and birth and then postnatally to 4-6 weeks, with at least 5 home visits.
As NZ trained midwives, we hold a 4 year equivalent Bachelor of Midwifery degree. We are licensed to prescribe for pregnancy and can order all of your tests and scans.
ANTENATAL VISITS
We begin our relationship with a booking visit where we start to get to know each other and collect a comprehensive health history. We will have regular antenatal appointments throughout your pregnancy to check on your health and discuss important topics and decisions. We will provide you with information, support, and encouragement for a healthy pregnancy.
The process of informed choice and consent is central to our midwifery philosophy with belief that the decisions around your body, your pregnancy, and your birth belong to you. Making time for discussions and questions you may have is important to us so that we can work together towards holistic, healthy, safe, and individualised care.
CONTACT
To enquire about booking with Heart & Hands as your midwife, please click the "request for Midwifery Booking" button
“There’s a secret in our culture, and it’s not that birth is painful. It’s that women are strong.”
Laura Stavoe
