When you have a conversation with Abigail Larson, Registered Midwife with the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, you can immediately see why Manitobans in her care would feel supported, excited, and confident in their ability to navigate pregnancy, childbirth, and beyond.
“I was a teenager watching the Cosby Show, and in one episode, there was a character going through a difficult birth. She was in the very capable hands of a midwife – although I had no idea what that person was called at the time,” says Abigail. “I remember thinking then that this is what I wanted to do. I wanted to be part of a community and help my neighbours grow their families.”
Abigail looked into the training and learned she wouldn’t be able to take it here in Manitoba. She began her health-care journey with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from UBC in 1997 and worked for two years as nurse at HSC Trauma, Children’s burn unit, then as a Labour & Delivery Nurse at Women’s Hospital until 1999. She then went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Midwifery from Thames Valley University in 2001, from London, England.
“When I returned to Manitoba in November 2001, I worked hard to achieve my registration as a midwife with the College of Midwives of Manitoba the very next year. That is when I joined the WRHA Midwife team and began practicing out of the Access Centre in River East, which was then a brand-new facility and a whole new model of health-care delivery for Winnipeg. I truly enjoyed being able to collaborate with all the other community health care providers located there, including public health nurses, GP’s, Nurse Practitioners, and other primary care providers.”
When Access Winnipeg West Primary Care Clinic in St. James was in development, Abigail jumped at the opportunity to consult on behalf of midwives, becoming a part of the primary care team. She then applied for a position there.
“I relocated to Access Winnipeg West in 2015 when it opened, and for the past 10 years, I’ve quite literally been living out my dream of being the neighbourhood midwife—delivering babies right down the street from my own home, sometimes even riding my bike to my clients’ homes for appointments. I’ve begun to see babies I delivered many years ago give birth to their own babies. I’ve helped my neighbours through many pregnancies, and I’ve had the pleasure of watching the children grow up. It’s really quite a gift!”
Abigail has been helping families grow for more than 23 years, while also growing her own family of four children, ranging in age from 10 to 19.
“I am so lucky to have a wonderful support system which has enabled me to practice midwifery. My husband is an engineer, and he is the primary parent on many days, cooking meals and coordinating extracurricular activities. My parents live nearby and have been incredibly helpful, picking up and dropping kids off, sleeping over at our place to help us out, you name it! For me, being a midwife is wonderful, but it’s a life, not a career.”
The WRHA prioritizes midwives’ clients according to a number of factors, including young age, Indigenous roots, and newcomers to Canada. In any given year, each WRHA midwife is aiming to serve a patient load of 30 to 36 clients, which can mean the midwife’s own life can take a backseat.
“Midwives definitely deal with atypical schedules and long days, and depending on the circumstance of a birth, there are times when we don’t get rest or breaks at all. When my patient is in labour, I’m there for the whole experience, beginning to end, which we all know can be a very long process. I am so fortunate my family and colleagues understand that, and I have many wonderful health-care colleagues who appreciate what I do. They support me in providing excellent service.”
Abigail provides prenatal and postpartum care at Access Winnipeg West and delivers babies at St. Boniface Hospital, HSC Women’s Hospital, Ode’imin (formerly the Birth Centre), and even in clients’ homes. An initial appointment with a new client ideally takes place when they’re 10 to 12 weeks pregnant, which is important for the timing of critical tests like fetal assessments, especially for advanced maternal age.
“I follow patients throughout their pregnancy to monitor their health and well-being, as well as the development of the baby. I’m there to admit patients under my name and to provide support throughout labour, working alongside partners, doulas and nursing staff and Obstetricians. I conduct the Newborn Baby Assessment at birth and coach parents with breastfeeding. Midwives do home visits during the first week after delivery, and we provide ongoing support until six weeks postpartum as families adjust to life after baby’s arrival. It’s really the whole gamut of pre and post-natal care.”
The result? Positive outcomes: Compared to patients not working with a midwife, those with a midwife are shown to have a lower likelihood of using narcotics during labour, a lower likelihood of requesting an epidural during labour, a lower likelihood of requiring an emergency C-section, and the greatest rates of success in breastfeeding.
Unfortunately, like most health-care professionals working in our busy system, Manitoba’s midwives are struggling with overload and burnout.
“In the WRHA, there are roughly 30 midwives, and according to the Canadian Association of Midwives, as of 2023, there are only about 80 midwives in total throughout Manitoba — numbers that have been stagnant since I started my health-care career three decades ago. Unfortunately, midwifery is high-demand, there are limited options for recruitment, and it’s a difficult long-term career, so attrition is a problem.”
Thankfully, UM’s Rady Faculty of Health Sciences now offers a four-year midwifery degree program with a possible cohort of eight students per year. Abigail says she is hopeful Manitoba will continue to see new grads come out of that program and plant roots throughout the province to grow the profession.
“There are so many more requests for a midwife’s services than we can accommodate. I would suggest to anyone considering a midwife to request one as soon as you know you’re having a baby. The sooner the better.”
abigail larson, midwife
Abigail says her personal mission is to create safe, supportive spaces for families, and she is passionate about giving each baby the best start possible.
“Just don’t ask me to ‘catch ’em all’—I’m a midwife, not a Pokémon trainer!”
Abigail: Fast Facts
In addition to her already extremely busy life, Abigail invests in her profession and volunteers in her community in so many ways:
- In her personal time, Abigail offers free prenatal classes to Manitobans through her church, Crestview Park Free Methodist Church.
- She was the Chair for the College of Midwives Perinatal Review Committee for almost 10 years.
- For the past three years, she has held position at the University of Manitoba as the Midwifery Program’s Clinical Educator Facilitator.
- She provides education and tours of the Birth Centre, now known as Ode’imin, to students from Transcona Collegiate Institute.
- She helps teach normal childbirth drills to medical residents at UM’s Brody Centre.
- She is an Instructor for WRHA’s Neonatal Resuscitation Program.
- She is the Coordinator for the Folklorama’s Ghana Pavilion.