The Midwife On A Mission
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/08/eveningnews/main4428250.shtml
WASHINGTON, Sept. 8, 2008(CBS) Every time Ruth Lubic fusses over a
healthy baby, the joy in her voice comes from eight long years of
beating the odds. In Washington, D.C., where the infant mortality
rate is almost double the national average, CBS News correspondent
Wyatt Andrews reports.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the
number of infant deaths per 1,000 births in the United States is 6.8 -
but in Washington, it's 12.2.
Lubic and her team of midwives run a birthing clinic in one of the
city's poorest areas. After 800 babies in eight years, they have
never lost a child in childbirth, and has cut the rate of premature
births - the biggest risk factor for infant mortality - in half.
"You are saving a lot of lives here," Andrews said.
Lubic replied: "Saving lives and increasing the quality of life."
Ruth built her clinic in Washington, D.C., on purpose. She figured if
her ideas worked there, if she could tackle infant mortality in
Washington, she'd set an example everywhere.
Her approach is simple. She believes low-income women, many on
Medicaid, need the prenatal education that midwives provide.
Everything from posture, to nutrition, to how the baby grows.
Anike Oliver, who just had a baby boy, Ukama, said she got more time
with the midwives than she had with a doctor.
"They wanted to make sure I had as much information as they did,"
Oliver said.
"Do you think it boils down to just the time you spend with them,"
Andrews asked Lubic.
"I think so," she replied. "I'm convinced that's what it is. It's
time, respect, its treating people with dignity."
And what's most remarkable is that Lubic still does it at 81 years
old. She's runs the clinic during the week, then runs homeon the
weekends to her husband in New York.
"You could be retired!" Andrews said.
"I'm not tired the first time! Much less retired," Lubic said.
Lubic's biggest fan is D.C. city councilman David Catania. He says
because she keeps hundreds of babies out of prenatal care, she saves
the city around a $1 million a year. That's why he supports her when
Ruth hounds the city council for funding.
"While I tease her a lot about being a pit bull with a smile, I look
at her sometimes with complete envy about how you can have such a
burning drive at 81," Catania said. "And it's a great inspiration."
"I think I'm insufferable because of my belief that what I'm doing
is the right thing to do," Lubic said.
Lubic says infant mortality is a national disgrace - but a disgrace
that midwives can help solve.
And this pit bull with a smile won't let go of that idea until it
sinks in nationwide.
MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/08/eveningnews/main4428250.shtml
WASHINGTON, Sept. 8, 2008(CBS) Every time Ruth Lubic fusses over a
healthy baby, the joy in her voice comes from eight long years of
beating the odds. In Washington, D.C., where the infant mortality
rate is almost double the national average, CBS News correspondent
Wyatt Andrews reports.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the
number of infant deaths per 1,000 births in the United States is 6.8 -
but in Washington, it's 12.2.
Lubic and her team of midwives run a birthing clinic in one of the
city's poorest areas. After 800 babies in eight years, they have
never lost a child in childbirth, and has cut the rate of premature
births - the biggest risk factor for infant mortality - in half.
"You are saving a lot of lives here," Andrews said.
Lubic replied: "Saving lives and increasing the quality of life."
Ruth built her clinic in Washington, D.C., on purpose. She figured if
her ideas worked there, if she could tackle infant mortality in
Washington, she'd set an example everywhere.
Her approach is simple. She believes low-income women, many on
Medicaid, need the prenatal education that midwives provide.
Everything from posture, to nutrition, to how the baby grows.
Anike Oliver, who just had a baby boy, Ukama, said she got more time
with the midwives than she had with a doctor.
"They wanted to make sure I had as much information as they did,"
Oliver said.
"Do you think it boils down to just the time you spend with them,"
Andrews asked Lubic.
"I think so," she replied. "I'm convinced that's what it is. It's
time, respect, its treating people with dignity."
And what's most remarkable is that Lubic still does it at 81 years
old. She's runs the clinic during the week, then runs homeon the
weekends to her husband in New York.
"You could be retired!" Andrews said.
"I'm not tired the first time! Much less retired," Lubic said.
Lubic's biggest fan is D.C. city councilman David Catania. He says
because she keeps hundreds of babies out of prenatal care, she saves
the city around a $1 million a year. That's why he supports her when
Ruth hounds the city council for funding.
"While I tease her a lot about being a pit bull with a smile, I look
at her sometimes with complete envy about how you can have such a
burning drive at 81," Catania said. "And it's a great inspiration."
"I think I'm insufferable because of my belief that what I'm doing
is the right thing to do," Lubic said.
Lubic says infant mortality is a national disgrace - but a disgrace
that midwives can help solve.
And this pit bull with a smile won't let go of that idea until it
sinks in nationwide.
MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
VIEW 6 of 6 COMMENTS
nina_kova:
that's awesome! what a gift! i have such respect and admiration for your calling. there are so many things that people "do" - but aren't always called to it. i think you are doing exactly what you were put here for! 
lilli:
You ok, Buttercup? 