
Heike Doyle, CPM, LM,
Founding Member
"I have wanted to be a midwife as long as I can remember. I was born at home in Germany and grew up with a fundamental belief that birth is normal.
At 25, I apprenticed under experienced rural midwives in Kentucky. There, learning from these wise women, experts in normal birth, I developed my philosophy of birth: babies know how to get in and they know how to get out. My role is to monitor the wellbeing of you and your baby while providing support and encouragement. In the security and love of this space, you and your baby can do what your bodies know how to do.
I have personally been on the receiving end of this type of family-centered care. My three children, Jonah, Shahala, and Julian, were all born at home. The experience of their births reinforced my understanding of the needs of pregnant women who choose to have their babies out of the hospital. The empowerment of my own experience frames my commitment to the midwifery model of care.
In 1993 I graduated Seattle Midwifery School and became a Licensed Midwife. In 2000, I became co-owner of the Puget Sound Birth Center. Here, I work closely with
Andrea Henderson to provide family-centered care by helping to ensure optimal health for mom and baby, encouraging a trust in the process of birth, and easing this joyful transition for families.
I have attended nearly 1500 births. I am as passionate about midwifery today as I was when I attended my first birth
20 years ago. I look forward to providing high quality care to families for many years ahead."
Andrea Henderson, CPM, LM
I
have had the desire to assist women giving birth since I was a
young child. My parents would ask me what I wanted to be when I
grew up and my answer was always “a doctor who delivers babies.”
After discovering midwifery, I knew that midwifery was my
calling. I hold strong beliefs that birth is a normal and
healthy process with great importance placed on each family
having a safe and satisfying experience. As an advocate for
birth, I have a compelling desire to enhance the confidence in
our culture's view of a woman’s body and her natural ability to
give birth. I hold a profound respect for people’s different
beliefs, customs and values. All women and their families
deserve quality health care with the right to choose how and
where they want to birth their babies. My goal to serve as a
midwife is largely based on a passion towards empowering women
and their families.
I attended Central Washington University while working towards a
Bachelors of Science degree in Pre-Midwifery. Following Central
Washington University, I attended the direct-entry program at
Seattle Midwifery School and became a Licensed Midwife. I feel
honored to have the opportunity to work with Heike Doyle at the
Puget Sound Birth Center where I trained under both Eastside
Midwives and Lake Washington Midwives during my time at Seattle
Midwifery School. During my training at Puget Sound Birth Center
I felt a strong connection between the midwives and myself, a
good fit from the beginning.
My husband, John, and I recently gave birth to our own daughter,
Luna, at home which uncovered yet another layer of my
understanding of the strong emotions of pregnancy, birth and the
postpartum period, as well as the empowering experience of
working with midwives in an out of hospital setting. I look
forward to serving you with the same superb midwifery care that
was given to me, which felt like a gift, during that tender time
surrounding birth.
Traci Palagi, CPM, LM
Traci has moved to Great Falls, MT, to set up her midwifery
practice there. We miss her and wish her all the best.
Traci can be contacted via her website at
www.greatfallshomebirth.com
Midwives Oath:
As a midwife, I uphold the following guiding principles:
To work in partnership with women, respecting the dignity and rights of the women I work with, recognizing that the most important determinant of a healthy pregnancy is the mother herself.
To support women to make informed choices and take responsibility for their own well-being.
To understand that childbearing is primarily a personal and community event; a normal process that involves physical, emotional and spiritual factors.
To facilitate these normal processes utilizing a holistic approach, recognizing that each pregnancy and birth is unique.
I believe that midwifery care represents an important resource for improving the health of mothers, babies and families.
I am dedicated to the development and advancement of the profession in North America.
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"The first time Justin and I met you, we walked out of the birth center knowing "those are the midwives for us". Thank you first for being so great at what you do–for knowing how to listen to women and their bodies, for knowing how to educate and reassure them to be confident mothers of healthy babies.
My birth experience at PSMBC is one I will cherish. Thank you for all your nurturing love and expertise."
– Jessica
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