Maternity and Midwifery Client Policy Notice

What a good one includes

• Clear definitions of on-call availability, including specific contact methods for urgent versus non-urgent clinical questions.
• A transparent backup midwife protocol outlining exactly who will step in if your primary provider is attending another birth.
• Defined guidelines for prenatal and postpartum appointment scheduling, including your cancellation and late-arrival policies.
• Explicit emergency communication protocols that instruct clients on when to page the midwifery team and when to call emergency services.
• A warm summary of your scope of practice, clarifying the holistic nature of your care and the boundaries of out-of-hospital birth.
• Detailed payment schedules and refund terms, including how insurance billing and non-refundable retainers are handled.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Using overly clinical or adversarial legal jargon that alienates expectant families seeking a warm, holistic birthing experience.
• Leaving the backup midwife arrangement vague, which causes client anxiety when a substitute practitioner suddenly appears at a birth.
• Failing to clearly distinguish between what constitutes an urgent clinical emergency and a routine postpartum question.
• Neglecting to outline the concrete procedures and expectations for a planned or unplanned transfer of care to a hospital.

Frequently asked questions