Center offers care for women, children
The nurse midwives at MUSCâs Nurse Midwifery and Pediatric
Center ã...do more than deliver babies.ä Itâs on their literature, theyâre
quick to say so, and itâs that full range of womenâs and childrenâs health
care services that they want people to learn about at their open house
from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7. Certified nurse midwife Patti Webb said
that the center, located at 159 Rutledge, offers pre-natal care and birthing,
pregnancy planning, well-woman check-ups and Pap smears, and contraception.
A pediatric nurse practitioner provides pediatric services for children
of all ages. They participate in the new Family Planning Medicaid program
and the Best Chance Network for women 50 and older. ãSometimes weâre seeing
three generations,ä Webb said. ãThereâs the mother for her obstetric and
gynecological care, her baby for pediatric care and the grandmother for
mammograms and Pap smear tests.ä Also, the Best Chance Network, a program
providing health care for women older than 50, frequently discovers women
with hypertension, diabetes and other medical conditions who need to be
referred to MUSC clinics. ãWeâre unique,ä Webb said, contrasting the MUSC
Nurse Midwifery and Pediatric Center with the usual womanâs health practice.
ãWe get to see the children after theyâre born. They bring the kids. We
get to follow up on their care and later see how theyâre doing in school.ä
The continuity of care and familiarity with mothers and their children
help to build patient relationships that translate in better compliance
and better prenatal and child health care, she said. In the seven years
the MUSC Nurse Midwifery and Pediatric Center has been caring for women
and their children, thereâs no doubt that the outcomes are better in the
29401 and 29403 postal Zip code areas, said certified nurse midwife Marjorie
McManus. But these two neighborhoods, both of which the midwifery center
has targeted since it opened, remain in need of accessible prenatal and
pediatric care because of their high infant morbidity and mortality rates,
which are a direct result of the socio-economic conditions of the areas.
ãOften itâs as basic as transportation, getting the women and their children
here,ä Webb said. ãWeâre right on the bus line where weâre located now.
I know if we ever move, we should be sure we stay on a bus line.ä She said
that the clinic is busy, space is limited, and the number of clients they
see are as much as the two pediatric nurse practitioners and six nurse
midwives can handle. McManus and Webb, both of them members of MUSCâs College
of Nursing faculty, agreed that much more could be done for womenâs and
childrenâs health in the neighborhoods around MUSC with more space and
more nurse practitioners. Members of the MUSC community are invited to
attend the open house on Oct. 7 to meet with the staff and learn more about
the center.