MRU launches midwife degree program

Mount Royal University is launching the only midwifery degree program in Alberta next year.

The four-year bachelor degree points to the evolution of health care delivery in Alberta, said Brenda Hendrickson, the school's dean of the faculty of health and community studies.

Demand for midwives in Alberta grew when the province began covering the $3,500 fee for their services two years ago.

The new degree program is designed to meet that demand, Hendrickson said.

According to the university, there are only 52 registered midwives working in Alberta.

Training more midwives means more expectant mothers will get the care they want while stress on the health care system will be reduced, said Alberta Health Minister Gene Zwozdesky.

There are only a handful of similar programs in Canada, including the University of British Columbia and Ryerson University in Toronto.

The program at MRUwill prepare students to write the Canadian Midwifery Registration Examination (CMRE), the school said.

Midwives care for women during pregnancy, through childbirth and in the first six weeks of their babies' lives.