Lakeridge Health Midwives Reflect on Years of Collaboration and Compassionate Care

For Lakeridge Health midwives Judi Brandson and Catherine Alstrup, empowering patients to make informed choices and fostering an empathetic and compassionate care environment fuel their dedication to practicing midwifery at Lakeridge Health.

Midwives deliver hundreds of babies at Lakeridge Health each year. For Judi, one delivery truly stands out. In February 2003, she delivered a little boy named Matthew, who was the first baby delivered by a practicing midwife at Lakeridge Health.

“It was a milestone for me and the other two midwives who also assisted,” said Judi.

As Judi reflects on nearly 20 years since that special delivery, she speaks with pride about the growth of the program since then.

“Lakeridge Health has now established community partnerships with multiple midwifery practices in Durham Region and midwives deliver babies at the Lakeridge Health Ajax Pickering and Oshawa Hospitals. As well, midwives are integrated within the obstetrical team, and we have a respectful and collaborative relationship with all members of the interprofessional team.”

Catherine Alstrup – a midwife with Community Care Midwives who has been practicing at Lakeridge Health for four years – echoes Judi’s comments. “The collaboration I feel working with the nurses and doctors at Lakeridge Health is something incredibly special,” said Catherine.

Catherine decided to become a midwife after using one for three of her pregnancies, and appreciated the unique care model midwives offer pregnant people.

“The continuity of care during my own birth experiences is what made me want to work in the health-care sector,” she explains. “As registered health-care professionals, midwives provide safe, evidence-based care to their patients. People have many questions during their pregnancy, and we are there to listen to their concerns and give them the information they need to feel empowered to make informed choices. As well, patients have access to their team of midwives 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and we’re with them during active labour and through the initial postpartum period.”

Ultimately, Catherine notes, “it’s about working together with the patient to provide the best care.”