I am now frustrated, annoyed, and getting nowhere fast with the LSBME. They are bullying me around and preventing me from getting a job and health insurance that I need to get rid of the thyroid cancer. I reached out to many lawyers and public interest groups. However, because there are not many licensed midwives in Louisiana, there are not a lot of people affected or so it seems. One of the reasons for that is the antitrust issues the LSBME presents. It intimidates midwives so that of course there will not be many in the state especially ones who they have deemed disruptive. I wrote to the FTC, but have not heard from them yet.
12/1/2017 I am certified as a certified professional Midwife (CPM) through the North American registry of midwives (narm). I have an associates degree in direct entry midwifery (non nursing). I had a midwifery license that was unrestricted in WI.
I would appreciate any help with the Louisiana state board of medical examiners (LSBME). It is beyond corrupt. Two years ago my (non-nurse direct entry) Midwife license was suspended based on their opinion that I was a danger to the community even though no one was hurt or injured. They claimed I delivered a baby incorrectly even though the parents testified on my behalf that nothing went wrong and they’d hire me again. The complaint was from a photographer who didn’t have any medical training. Conveniently that same year a competing birth center opened five miles away from my home in my city. The photographer worked closely with that birth center. When Home birth non-nurse midwives (certified professional midwives or CPMs) were originally licensed the state rules required a board of Midwives to review licensing complaints. As years passed and the state couldn’t afford to fund the midwifery board because of budgetary constraints it was absolved and combined under the medical board (all physicians). Currently no midwives (nurse or non nurse ones) serve to review complaints. During the adjudication the lsbme held me to an obstetrical standard or a CNM ( certified nurse Midwife) one. I’m not a certified nurse Midwife.
By suspending my license indefinitely the LSBME limited its citizens access to a home birth Midwife because i had a patient who delivered unassisted without any trained medical provider at Home three days after my suspension because I didn’t have time to petition the Board for a completion of her care as it was a weekend. I had no choice but to stop caring for clients in the middle of their pregnancies even though I was not sure how I was a danger to clients as no one in my care had been hurt or injured or died. I had only had a midwifery license in la for a year. And it was my second delivery. Additionally I had a doctor overseeing all of my clients per la law. The doctor stated in EMR five times that my client was suitable for a home birth. I have an associates degree in midwifery that I cannot use now as my license is permanently suspended. I also have another degree in midwifery from a private school in Florida but I cannot gain licensure there because of my suspended one in la. I had a license in Wisconsin also which was not affected but I chose not to renew it. Since there are only 10 licensed midwives in Louisiana losing one Midwife can limit access to care for women seeking out of hospital births. Clearly midwives are competition for doctors.
The board is imposing egregious and burdensome requirements for my Suspension to be satisfied. For instance a psych evaluation with no basis for this. And although the order doesn’t state the level of psych evaluation the doctor in charge of the board is making me get an in-depth three-day in-patient evaluation. Again there is no basis for this as no drugs, no alcohol, nor psych disorders were involved in my case. Likewise the Order doesn’t give a “diagnosis” for the psych evaluation as their isn’t one but nevertheless I need to complete one.
Please help. I moved to Georgia to continue working as a Midwife because it isn’t regulated in ga. And because I cannot get a job because background checks prevent me from qualifying.
I tried to link the adjudication from the lsbme website but it is unavailable at this time. Thank you. JM
My Journey as a Licensed Midwife in Louisiana 