This is a brief summary of the history of midwifery and beginnings of nurse-midwifery in the United States.Though the statistics are a bit dated, the article also has some recent data on the positive impact of the recent resurgence of midwifery practice since it began declining in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It also discusses the profession of nurse-midwifery's close ties with public health and under served communities.
This article discusses the limitations in scope-of-practice caused by state regulation of health professions. It also stresses the importance of allowing APRNs to practice within their full-scope as supported by various research and defined by national regulating organizations in order to improve primary care.