MANA and Research

The mission of the Midwives Alliance Research Committee is to increase the capacity for and dissemination of rigorous research and innovation in maternal-infant health. In particular, the MANA aims to facilitate research on the characteristics and outcomes of midwifery care, physiologic birth practices, and place of delivery. To achieve these goals the members of the DOR are engaged in several initiatives:

The MANA Research Committee maintains the MANA Statistics Registry, a perinatal registry of maternal and infant health data from midwife-led births. Midwives have obtained consent from childbearing families across North America to provide detailed information about their maternity care. Participating midwives can use the information to track and evaluate their own practice statistics. Researchers can access the de-identified datasets to study the process and outcomes of midwifery care, physiologic birth, and place of delivery. The Midwives Alliance has the largest dataset on midwife-led births primarily occurring in home or birth center settings in the United States. 

Are you a state-level advocate or policy maker considering using MANA stats for legislative or regulatory midwifery data collection and/or reporting? Please review this guidance.