Local maternity care providers are developing a new maternity clinic in Smithers that will service expecting mothers from Burns Lake to Witset and is intended to streamline the pregnancy care process.
Dr. Marlowe Haskins and midwife Bobbie Adkins are spearheading the initiative.
Dr. Haskins said they are developing the new care clinic for a couple of reasons, one of them being the region is at risk of losing some maternity care providers because there aren’t enough deliveries for the providers to feel competent.
“We wanted to make sure that everybody is on sort of an even footing, and that we keep our maternity providers active enough so that we keep enough here to keep the maternity care group healthy and sustainable,” he explained.
He said the other reason is to encourage more providers to come, especially midwives because there is only one currently.
The plan is for the clinic to be a self-contained unit beside the primary care clinic on Third Avenue.
There will be examination rooms, a breastfeeding lounge, an office waiting area, and all of the maternity care providers will work there.
“Probably a different provider each day seeing all the pregnant women in Smithers,” said Dr. Haskins. “And then we will also share being on call at the hospital so that it’s equally shared among the six or seven of us that currently do.”
Most of the funding has been secured but they are still searching for a bit more.
Adkins added that home births will also still be available.
“And by having another midwife, instead of me being on call 100 per cent of the time for the home births. It’ll just be 50. And that will be nice,” she said.
There are other communities in the province that have adopted a similar system, so Haskins said it isn’t new and is likely the way of the future.
The hope is for it to be up and running by the end of the year.
The region averages about 225 deliveries annually.
READ MORE: New walk-in medical clinic opens Oct. 17
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