Michelle Reynolds

RN, CNM, MSN

"I work at AustinABC as a midwife to offer women a healthy and safe alternative for birth outside of the hospital. My number one goal for each birth is to have a safe mother and a safe baby. I believe in creating a calm and relaxed environment and looking at birth as a natural process. When unexpected difficulties arise my hope is to guide women through those situations as smoothly as possible, allowing each woman to look back on her birth experience positively. I want women to feel supported, educated, and empowered to make choices for themselves with the guidance of the midwives. I think being a midwife allows the one on one time with women necessary to make that happen. I feel privileged to work with women and their families, to be involved in such intimate and life changing experiences. I cannot think of a more rewarding profession. I love getting to see women through the whole process of pregnancy, birth, and becoming new mothers. Each woman, her family, and their experience are so unique. To me, that is what makes this work magical and makes me want to dedicate my life to midwifery. "

Education:

    * Bachelor of Science in Nursing, 2003, University of Texas, Austin
    * Master of Nursing, Nurse Midwifery, 2010, Oregon Health and Science University

Experience:

    * Volunteer RN, Holy Family Free Standing Birth Center, 6-06 through 6-07
          o Home visits for newborns and moms
          o Midwife assisting
          o Teaching of birth classes in both English and Spanish
          o Facilitated Centering Pregnancy program in Spanish
    * Volunteer RN, Yayasan Bumi Sehat Birth Center, Bali, Indonesia, July and Aug. 2007
          o Assisted midwives in all aspects of care
    * RN/Midwife Assistant, Best Start Birthing Center- San Diego, CA 10-07 through 9-08
          o Assisted midwives with all aspects of birth and postpartum
          o Homevisit exams and education of mothers
    * Labor and Delivery RN, Paradise Valley Hospital, National City, CA, 1-08 through 9-08
    * Labor and Delivery RN, Providence Milwaukie Hospital, Milwaukie, OR, Oct 2008 through present

Other Skills and Certifications:

    * Spanish speaker
    * CPR Certified
    * NRP Certified
    * DONA trained
    * AWHONN fetal heart monitoring trained
    * Completion of "STABLE" course for newborn care