Mary O’Meara, Certified Nurse Midwife Owner, CNM Women’s Healthcare, Tampa, Florida

I have an OBGYN/Midwifery practice consisting of four fulltime and one part time obstetrician, eleven Certified Nurse Midwives (including myself) and three Nurse Practitioners.

My current practice is the fortuitous result of an unplanned event. In 1992, I was laid off of a hospital-based midwife practice. I looked around at what small hospitals needed. One of them needed obstetrical care so I contracted with them and started a pre-natal clinic. I borrowed $10,000 and hired four midwives to start a small private practice so I could provide 24 hr/day in-house coverage to the hospital. I also had a contract with local Air Force through a local Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS) grant and contracted with them.