This page has been created by the friends and family of Maggie Jihan. An Illinois midwife, Maggie faces state charges for practicing medicine and nurse-midwifery without a license.
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What’s Going On
In the fall of 2007 Maggie received a Cease and Desist notice from the state for the illegal practice of medicine without a license. Shortly thereafter, she received a second Cease and Desist notice for the illegal practice of nurse-midwifery without a license. The fines accompanying these notices totaled $10,000, a steeper and more quickly fined amount than ever previously charged to a lay midwife in the state of Illinois for first or repeat offenses. While paying the fine and moving to a state more hospitable to direct-entry midwives may seem the route to take in such a situation, this ignores two very important points.
First, neither the law guiding the Practice of Medicine nor the law outlining the Practice of Certified Nurse-Midwifery includes the work done by WomynWise, by Maggie, or by any of the other direct-entry midwives of the state. Direct-entry midwives do not claim to have the knowledge, skills, or background of medical doctors or hospital personnel, and they watch diligently for the early warning signs of complications in order to transfer care to a doctor and/or hospital should such a need arise to guarantee the safety of their clients. Second, the people of Illinois are seeking services such as those provided by WomynWise, and the state is delinquent in meeting the needs of its people. Thus, the people are coming together to create the services they need and to fill the vacancies left by the Western model of medicine and hospital-based medical practices.
The Fight
Because of the two above-mentioned points, Maggie has decided to FIGHT the charges of practicing medicine without a license and practicing nurse-midwifery without a license. The biggest difficulty of this fight will be to gain enough support – monetary support and real people support – to get the case to court and through the system.
Every donation counts.
Monetary contributions can be made at the top of the page.
We would also like to accept donated items for raffles or auctions, but cannot do so as of right now.
A Little About Maggie and WomynWise
A lay midwife for close to twenty years, Maggie’s practice has always been based on the education, empowerment, and safety of women and their babies. WomynWise, Maggie’s practice, supports the education of mothers and their families during pregnancy and the post-partum period. However, WomynWise is not strictly a midwifery practice. As a home birth educator, Maggie provides services through WomynWise that range from prenatal education to doula to midwife. Above all, WomynWise is a provider of woman to woman and mother to family educational services during the time of pregnancy and delivery so that families can make informed decisions about the prenatal and maternity care they receive.
A Little About the Situation in Illinois
Homebirth midwives who do not follow the Western medical model via CNM training and hospital-based care have been outlawed in Illinois through a lack of specific laws allowing their practice. Although there is a growing demand for homebirth attendants, namely CPM and other types of direct-entry midwives, Illinois has continued to drag its feet in the passage of legislation to accommodate this demand. Meanwhile, the demand for home-based prenatal and post-partum care has been met by midwives like Maggie through services such as WomynWise. Maggie has been training for her CPM through NARM, both to further her own education and to be prepared for the passage of legalizing legislation in her home state.
