The 10th Annual Conscious Birth Summit will be held on Saturday and Sunday, January 16 & 17, 2016 at the Iowa City Public Library and at Heartland Yoga, Iowa City from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m and 12 to 5 p.m... respectively. The event is free and open to the public. The event seeks to offer conversational, introductory access to health care providers with traditional and complementary care methods and techniques that promote optimal maternal/newborn health. Chiropractic, Traditional Chinese Medicine and hiring a Doula information will be shared on Saturday. The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics is hosting a film screening of “The Mama Sherpas” with an expert talk-back to follow. Also, several organizations that are working to advocate for a transformation to more evidence-based practices in hospitals will present on current goals. There are many activities and presentations to choose from throughout both days intended for pregnant families and those with young children. Sunday topics cover postpartum family health. Community discussions cover a wide spectrum of topics including; supporting breastfeeding, nutritional health, Autism support and hiking and biking with children. The UI Children’s Hospital Mother’s Milk bank of Iowa will host a screening of the film “The Milky Way” with another expert Q & A panel on Sunday at noon.
A full itinerary is listed on our website. www.consciousbirthiowa.com
Dr. Kari Ward, DNP, ARNP/CNM Clinical Director, Staff Certified Nurse-Midwife of Healing Passage Birth Wellness Center in Des Moines will open the day's events with
"Informed Maternity Care, What It Looks Like and Why You Want It" at 10 am.
Doulas are privately employed patient advocates that commit to attending your birth in the hospital, offer comfort measures, positional suggestions and a calm presence. They also see clients for prenatally to educate and prepare parents for their best possible birth and postpartum experience. Doulas are not primary care providers but seek to bring back to birth the autonomy and normalcy of natural, self directed labor and birth for women who wish to have more attentive care.
There will be a "Meet the Doulas; Speed Dating Style" session on Saturday sponsored by Thrive! Doulas where Iowa City Doulas will be available for short one-on-one interviews with the public.
Lynne Himmelreich, ARNP, CNM,MPH,FACNM Clinical Professor of University of Iowa Department of OB?GYN will speak about "Normal Physiologic Birth in the Hospital"
University of Iowa Women's Health Nurse-Midwife Service Director
Dr. Terry Wahls, MD, research physician of functional medicine at UIHC who has cured her own MS through nutrition shares "Food Impacts on Fertility, Pregnancy, Breast feeding and Beyond".
Mandi Hardy Hillman, PhD, LPC, CD (DONA), ICCE Board Member with ImprovingBirth.org, Co-Founder & Current President of Iowa Birth Organization, Owner of Gentle Beginnings Birth Services. A passionate advocate for human rights in childbirth, Mandi explores the history of birth from a feminist perspective; what the current state of maternity care is; and what's being done to improve it. www.iowabirth.org
Many opportunities exist throughout the two days to build community, interview complementary and traditional care practitioners, childbirth education providers, counselors and other parents. The Iowa City Public Library Children's Room will also be hosting a older siblings storytime event at 10:30 a.m and a Sweet Feet Yoga "Mommy and Me" class at 1:30 pm. Iowa Cesarean Awareness Network, Improvebirth.org, Intact Quad Cities and Iowa City Babywearers will present in adjacent Meeting Rooms.
This year's sponsors include the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics- Women's Health, Seva Center of Healing Arts, Twig and Needle Chinese Medicine, Robinson Family Wellness, Iowa Birth Organization and Monarch Birth Services.
