New NARM Policies

  1. A preceptor for a NARM PEP applicant must be credentialed as a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM), Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM), or Licensed Midwife who has an additional three years of experience or 50 births, including ten (10) continuity of care births beyond the primary birth experience requirements for CPM certification. (effective June 1, 2010) A preceptor who does not meet the above requirements may request an exemption by filling out the preceptor application form on this web site.
  2. Neonatal Resuscitation will be required for certification and recertification. (effective January 1, 2011)
  3. MEAC Students: NARM requires documentation of ten (10) primary out-of-hospital births within the three (3) years prior to the application submission.

Visit the New NARM Forum Today!

NARM is pleased to announce a new communication tool for our community. The NARM Forum is a new public forum for open discussions about all things related to CPMs and the women they serve. Topics include Advocacy, Testing, Applications, Looking For: Preceptors/Apprentices/Partners, Miscellaneous Musings, and Student Alley. Come comment or start your own thread on any of these topics. We want to hear from you!

NARM’s first post is under the Advocacy category, titled "10 Things You Should Know About PEP." Please come and read this important and timely document and give us your thoughts.

Sincerely,
The NARM Board of Directors

Job Analysis Survey Completed!

The 2008 NARM Job Analysis survey has been completed, and the results are now under analysis. Thank You to the many CPMs who took the time to fill out the survey. The results of the survey will be posted in early 2010.

Stay Informed with Email Updates.

Select your choice of topics including Students Updates, CPM Updates, Midwife Advocacy and State Legislation. Subscribe Today!

NARM Out of Country Clinical Sites Information

As of January 1, 2009, prenatals, births, newborn exams, and postpartums attended in clinical sites outside of the United States and Canada may not be documented on the PEP forms as primary maternity care unless the site has been approved by NARM. Births attended at unapproved sites may only be counted as “active participant” on the PEP documentation. 

Click here for more information.

CPM Issue Brief Posted!

We are pleased to announce the release of an Issue Brief: Certified Professional Midwives in the United States. The North American Registry of Midwives collaborated with the Midwives Alliance of North American (MANA), the Midwifery Education Accreditation Council (MEAC), and the National Association of Certified Professional Midwives (NACPM) to create this issue brief. These four national organizations—NARM, MANA, MEAC and NACPM—have played essential roles in the conception, formation, promotion and maintenance of the Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) credential. Click here to read the Issue Brief.

NARM's CPM2000 Data has been Published!

The BMJ, in their June 18, 2005 issue, published "Outcomes of planned home births with Certified Professional Midwives: large prospective study in North America." Read the full paper here.

MEAC Students and Graduates

Click here for current policies!

Need to get CEUs On-Line?

Click here for links to on-line CEU opportunities.

Change in policy on 1995 NARM written exam as of April 4, 2004:

Candidates who passed the NARM written exam in 1995 may apply for NARM certification through the Special Circumstances category until Dec. 31, 2005 without having to take a more recent exam. After that date, all applicants must sit the current NARM written exam (unless they are applying as a state-licensed midwife).

We now have posted midwifery legislation from the states with current laws about midwifery.

Click here for a state-by-state chart.

Click here to view NARM's Position Paper on the Practice of Midwifery

If you would like to contribute statistics to the MANA Statistics Project, the address to mail your enrollment form and consent forms to follows:

P.O. Box 6310
Charlottesville, VA 22906

Click here for information about on-line statistics collection.

Buy a quality frame for your CPM Certificate!

Click here to learn more!

NARM Receives NCCA Accreditation

NARM is pleased to announce that the CPM credential has been accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA). The NCCA is the accrediting body of the Institute for Credentialing Excellence (ICE), formerly the National Organization for Competency Assurance (NOCA). Click here for more information.

The Veterans Administration now reimburses NARM Written Exam fees!

The North American Registry of Midwives, Written Examination of the NARM, is entered into the list of approved examinations for VA reimbursement. This means that veterans and eligible dependents can be reimbursed for the cost of the examination. Also, anyone who is eligible for reimbursement and took the test during the last calendar year, will be able to apply for reimbursement. For more information, please contact the VA.

What is a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM)?

A Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) is an independent practitioner who has met the standards for certification set by the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM) and is qualified to provide the Midwives Model of Care. The NARM certification process recognizes multiple routes of entry into midwifery and includes verification of knowledge and skills and the successful completion of both a Written Examination and Skills Assessment. The CPM credential requires training in out-of-hospital settings.

The Certified Professional Midwife brochure is now available for purchase!

Click here to learn more about this brochure.

NARM Written Examination Inclement Weather Policy

In the event of inclement weather, NARM's policy is that if the test site is closed, the test will be postponed until the site is open again. The new date will be mutually agreed on by NARM and the test site, but will be as close to the original date as possible. It is possible, though not likely, that the site would be unable to accommodate the NARM exam within a reasonable period and the candidates might have to wait until the next testing cycle.

If the test site is open but the candidate's local weather prevents her from reaching the test site, the test cannot be rescheduled for the candidate. The candidate will be required to pay a $75 re-schedule fee to register for the next cycle. If the candidate does not show at the testing site and inclement weather cannot be documented, the reschedule fee is $400. It is highly recommended that if the candidate is planning a long drive to the test site, it would be best to arrive near the test site the night before to avoid any weather or traffic delays that might interfere with arrival early the next morning.

The NARM Test Department will make every effort to stay in touch with the test site coordinator prior to the exam to anticipate any closings due to weather, and will notify candidates whenever possible. If you are unsure, or are not available at the phone number listed with NARM, please call the NARM Test Department for updates.

Inclement weather means snow or ice in the winter and hurricanes or floods in the summer. This policy also applies to any unplanned event that causes the test site to close, such as a loss of electricity or terrorism alert.