LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) — A Lafayette mom shared her experience with Lourdes Physician Group Midwifery Clinic with her healthcare provider, leading to a more personal and comfortable pregnancy experience.

Carida Peterson was nervous as a new expecting mom, who had recently moved to Lafayette.
The move came with the task of finding a new team to help her through her pregnancy.
Instead of a traditional doctor, Peterson, researched and felt most comfortable with a midwife.

“Then try to figure out who I was going to go to.” Peterson said. “I know that, Dr. Jo, that was she was a midwife. So I said, Well, that would make me more comfortable to have somebody here is like personal with me that I could come to a state of a regular doctor. Then I was already like six months in my pregnancy, so I was like crunch time. So thank God for Dr. Joe.”

Peterson found the midwife clinic at Lourdes Physician Group Midwifery Clinic, which has been around for almost 4 years. Her team, lead by Jo Lethermon, a certified nurse midwife and women’s health nurse practitioner.

“Women are becoming more privy to midwifery and how we are a very important part of the maternal health crisis, kind of solving that problem as we bring balance to physiologic birth. And so that’s kind of our superpower and our a little bit of our specialty.” Lethermon

Letherman believes a midwifry experience can be a little more personal, and give the mom a comfortable pregnancy.

“We try and make it a very homey feel so that it feels familiar and nice and that women can come in and relax and have normal conversation between us themselves and, you know, get their questions answered.” Lethermon said. “And we really do get to know their families and we hear their concerns. And it’s so rewarding at the end once we see that baby.”

Letherman believes that feeling comes as a result of the training, certification, experience and support the staff learns to use for moms like Peterson.

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