Home birth options during COVID-19 outbreak

From the moment you step inside

, you're asked to wash your hands and checked for a fever.

Midwife Amanda Macdonald, LM, CPM said it's all part of the company's new safety measures during this pandemic as they take in a wave of new clients inquiring about home births.

"We're seeing a little uptick in that," said Macdonald. "It's a little taxing on us, but we're being very careful about which candidates are good for home birth and making sure that we can do that safely and give care to our clients like we normally do."

With health care workers fighting on the front lines and hospitals taking in COVID-19 patients, expecting mothers have more to worry about than just giving birth.

"It's a huge shift in mindset," added Macdonald. "Home births are really different but for clients who feel home births are for them after shifting gears, we do ask that they bring their medical records and we want to know what's going on in the course of their pregnancy."

Macdonald said while she understands new moms may have concerns moving forward with a home birth, they're available to help the community and answer any questions.

"As midwives we are trained to deal with a lot of issues that may arise,"

said Macdonald. "Were also trained to monitor how the birth is going."

Another issue to monitor for? Postpartum depression.

"Women are expecting their moms to cover over, their friends or sisters," explained Macdonald. "That they're going to have that support from our community. Now we're social distancing, people can't come over. That's a huge change in plans."

Despite all the changes made with this pandemic, Macdonald said the one thing which hasn't changed is the love and care they provide.

"That's one of the big things with midwifery care," added Macdonald. "It's super individualized and a relationship based model of care. We want to know our clients and we want them to know us."