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Happy pregnant woman with midwife

Prenatal Care means quality time with the midwives at Geneva Woods

At Geneva Woods Birth Center, prenatal care appointments are spent together discussing your pregnancy and getting to know one another. Women who wish to give birth at The Nest or at Providence with our midwives need to receive at least some prenatal care with our midwives. 

When deciding whether to choose Geneva Woods Birth Center for your care, the midwives are happy to sit down with you for a brief, no-cost, no-obligation visit to see if we can meet your needs.

Prenatal Services

Prenatal Visits

Our Anchorage midwives are here to support you as soon as you receive a positive pregnancy test. Care usually begins around nine weeks with a 90-minute visit with a midwife who is there to answer all your questions. We’ll schedule you for 10-13 visits throughout your pregnancy, with each appointment lasting around 30-45 minutes. The majority of appointment time is spent discussing important topics such as nutrition, exercise, stress, and what to expect at each stage in pregnancy, with the emphasis on education and getting to know you and your family as a unit. ​ Care is individualized, and women can choose if they desire more frequent visits or, in the case of many returning clients, less frequent visits.

Scans

At Geneva Woods Birth Center, we have an ultrasound machine and can perform simple scans such as early dating, and fluid assessments (AFI) if you go over 41 weeks. If you develop risk factors, we can do non-stress testing (NST) in the office as well, so you can avoid going to the hospital for fetal monitoring. ​ We will be happy to order a ‘first trimester screen’ and/or a 18-20 week scan if you choose at a local ultrasound testing office or your PPO hospital.

Testing

Testing at Geneva Woods Birth Center never includes expensive tests that you don’t need. During your first pregnancy visit, we will do a prenatal panel of blood work along with a physical exam. Your midwife will also discuss all the available genetic and anomaly screening tests, and can order testing if it’s indicated. Your midwife will help you sort through the various tests to decide if they are right for you and your family. ​ Between 26-28 weeks gestation, we test for anemia again, and do a screening test for gestational diabetes. Women with no risk factors for gestational diabetes can decline this test if they choose. At 37 weeks, we routinely offer screening for Group B Strep bacteria.

41 Week Testing

Babies born after 41-42 weeks can have problems with receiving inadequate oxygen and nutrients if the placenta grows old prematurely. It is hard to know which babies will be compromised, but we have two tests that we use at 41 weeks to see if the environment in the uterus is still healthy. Most midwives and doctors do this ‘postdates testing’ starting at 41 weeks. Testing consists of: AFI: This stands for amniotic fluid index. We use an ultrasound machine to measure the pockets of fluid surrounding the baby. Your baby should have at least one large pocket measuring 2.5 cms or a total of 5 cms fluid. NST: This stands for non-stress test. We place you on the fetal monitor and watch for fetal movements. Each time your baby moves the heart rate should increase. We will monitor for a period of time and hopefully your baby will be awake and his or her heart rate will reassuringly increase when that happens. Biophysical Profile: This test is only done if the above tests are not clearly reassuring. The ultrasound technician will look at your baby’s muscle tone and check to see if he or she is breathing.

 Our Midwives 

Geneva Woods midwife Barbara Norton

Barbara Norton, CNM, WHCNP, MSN, CNS

Birth Center Founder, Midwife

Barbara has been a nurse since 1978, a nurse practitioner since 1985, and a midwife since 1994. She is a graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno and the University of California, San Francisco. Barbara worked as a Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner for 9 years (1985-1994) before becoming a midwife. During that time she worked in a variety of settings honing her skills in contraceptive management, menopausal counseling, and irregular menstrual bleeding. She opened her own private midwifery and women's health care practice in Anchorage in 1995, but left that practice in 2015 to start a smaller, more cozy and intimate practice. She was a recipient of the 2016 YWCA Women of Achievement award and in 2017 she won the Chamber of Commerce's Athena Award for her business acumen and for mentoring other women to be successful in business. Barbara has been affiliated with the University of Alaska, teaching nurse practitioner students, and has served on many community boards, including the Board of Certified Direct Entry Midwives and the Alaska Women’s Gold Nugget Triathlon. She currently serves on the American Association of Birth Center board as Secretary. She has been married to Bradley Cruz since 1979 and has two daughters who both live in Anchorage, and three grandchildren, all born at Geneva Woods Birth Center Barbara enjoys traveling, hiking, trail running, triathlon, reading, cooking, and spending time with her kids and their families.

Sarah Schultz, APRN, CNM

Midwife

Sarah joined our practice in summer of 2022. She was previously a CNM in an OB-owned practice in Lansing, Michigan, attending hospital births. She graduated with her MSN/CNM degree from Frontier Nursing University in 2018. She earned her BSN/RN at Baker College, and worked as an RN for several years before attending graduate school. While working as an RN in the Labor and Delivery Unit of the hospital, she grew weary of watching the ways in which highly medicalized birth – even for low-risk women – resulted in dissatisfying and sometimes even downright traumatic birth experiences for patients, and she knew she wanted to be part of a different model of maternity care. She is currently working on her Doctor of Nursing Practice through Frontier Nursing University, and is thoroughly enjoying discovering Alaska and all the different outdoor activities and communities here.

Geneva Woods midwife Sarah Schultz
Geneva Woods midwife Jenna Falter, CNM

Jenna Falter, CNM

Midwife

Jenna joined our practice in August of 2022, after moving up to Alaska with her family from Michigan. Born in Minnesota, Jenna graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in Biology and Chemistry, met her husband, and moved to MI to pursue a nursing career. While doing research for her own labor and birth, she discovered the ‘Midwifery Model of Care,’ ultimately leading her to pursue a Masters in Midwifery. She received her MSN/CNM from Frontier Nursing University in 2022, during which time she also worked as a Triage RN in an OB/midwifery practice in Lansing, MI. Her clinical rotation concluded with her own infant son being her last “catch” of the preceptorship, which was supervised by Sarah Schultz, CNM. She loves taking care of women, girls and people through menarche, pregnancy, birth and menopause, and is passionate about empowering clients by helping align their understanding of self with evidence-based clinical knowledge. She thoroughly enjoys connecting with clients and families, and strives to provide individualized wellness. Outside of the clinic, Jenna is enjoying exploring the many outdoor Alaskan activities and opportunities with her husband and three children.

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