A midwife is a licensed professional who provides primary care to clients and their babies during pregnancy, labour, birth, and the postpartum period. As primary care providers, midwives may be the first point of entry to maternity services and are fully responsible for clinical decisions and the management of care within their scope of practice.
The midwife is recognized as a responsible and accountable professional who works in partnership with women to give the necessary support, care and advice during pregnancy, labour and the postpartum period, to conduct births on the midwife’s own responsibility and to provide care for the newborn and the infant. This care includes preventive measures, the promotion of normal birth, the detection of complications in mother and child, the accessing of medical or other appropriate assistance and the carrying out of emergency measures.
The midwife has an important task in health counselling and education, not only for the woman, but also within the family and community. This work should involve antenatal education and preparation for parenthood and may extend to women’s health, sexual or reproductive health and childcare.
A midwife may practise in any setting including the home, community, hospitals, clinics or health units.
International Confederation of Midwives, 2005
To be registered in Nova Scotia, a midwife will have completed a four-year university program that covers a wide variety of subjects related to midwifery, ethics, and clinical skills, successfully passed a national exam and received an offer of employment from the health authorities. In Nova Scotia, only midwives who are registered with the Midwifery Regulatory Council of Nova Scotia can call themselves a “Registered Midwife”.
Fundamental to midwifery care is respect for the normal, healthy process of pregnancy and childbirth, and for women’s power and ability to give birth. Midwifery care promotes, protects and facilitates normal physiologic birth.
The purpose of a Code of Ethics is to set forth the ethical principles and standards which professionals are expected to meet and by which their actions can be judged. The MRCNS Code of Ethics identifies the obligations inherent in the midwife’s professional role. Midwives have a responsibility to maintain the integrity of their profession and to uphold ethical principles in the provision of care for childbearing women and their infants within their families and communities. This Code is grounded in values that are fundamental to midwifery practice and professional relationships with clients, families, colleagues and communities.
Competencies for entry to the practice of midwifery in Canada are defined by the Canadian Midwifery Regulators Consortium (CMRC) in Canadian Competencies for Midwives.
The general and specific competencies defined by the CMRC in the following areas are approved by Council as core competencies for midwives in Nova Scotia:
In Nova Scotia, the clinical practice of midwifery means the provision of antepartum, intrapartum, postpartum and newborn care as a primary care provider. This care may be provided either within or outside of a hospital setting.
Self-regulation recognises the maturity of a profession and acknowledges its members are capable of governing themselves. It means the government has delegated its regulatory authority to those with the specialised knowledge required to do the job. A self-regulating profession such as midwifery protects the public interest by setting standards of practice and disciplining members who fail to meet them.
As a midwife, you are a regulated health professional. Registration with the Midwifery Regulatory Council of Nova Scotia comes with responsibilities detailed in provincial legislation and regulations, as well as Councils standards, policies, and by-laws.
The Council’s mandate is to regulate midwifery in the public interest, which we do by ensuring midwives meet our high and achievable expectations.
When a client chooses a midwife, they must be confident they’re working with a healthcare provider who is highly skilled and ethical.
You can choose how involved you’d like to be with the Council, but self-regulation works best when midwives are engaged and familiar with the activities of the Council.
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Midwives must be licensed by the Midwifery Regulatory Council of Nova Scotia. The Registrar of the Council issues licences in the following classes:
Subclasses within the active-practicing licence class:
In accordance with the Regulations Respecting Midwifery and the policies of the Midwifery Regulatory Council of Nova Scotia, midwives must hold an active-practicing (clinical) licence to engage in the clinical practice of midwifery. Midwives who are not engaged in clinical practice but work in the fields of research, education, consultation, management, administration, regulation, policy or system development relating to the practice of midwifery, as defined in the Midwifery Act, may hold an active-practising (non-clinical) licence.
Criteria for entry in the active practicing roster (clinical and non-clinical) are:
Personal contact information is used by the Council for direct contact with members, and is not released to the general public. The Council does maintain a public roster that includes all practice and professional information on each member.
It is important that you keep the Council informed of any changes to your contact information so that we may contact you regarding your application and registration.
In order to be eligible for registration you must be either a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident of Canada or authorized under the Immigration Act (Canada) to engage in open employment in Canada. You must submit proof of your citizenship, residency or employment authorization along with your application.
In this section, you must list all current and previous professional registration including international registrations, registrations in other Canadian provinces or territories, and registrations in other regulated health professions. Midwives who are or have been registered in other Canadian provinces or territories will need to arrange for letters of professional conduct to be delivered to the Registrar directly from the regulatory body. You will need to sign a consent form to release this information, and complete the request form as required by your regulatory body. For those registered in other jurisdictions or professions copies of your registration certificates or other proof of registration must be attached to your application.
Registered midwives in Nova Scotia must hold a baccalaureate degree from a Canadian university midwifery education program; or have educational qualifications equivalent to this degree.
Please list all of your midwifery education as indicated, and include notarized copies of all degrees, diplomas and certificates earned in these programs. If you are applying for registration as a midwife for the first time since graduating, please attach one original Record of Clinical Experience and arrange for your university to send an official transcript directly to the Registrar.
Registered midwives in Nova Scotia must also complete the Canadian Midwifery Registration Examination (CMRE). Please arrange for the exam results to be sent to the MRCNS.
According to the Regulations, criteria for an active-practicing (clinical) licence are: At least the following practice hours or experience:
The clinical practice of midwifery is defined in the Regulations as the provision of antepartum, intrapartum, postpartum and newborn care as a primary care provider. In accordance with the definition of midwifery practice in the Act, midwives may practise either within or outside of a hospital setting.
In accordance with the requirements of the Act, the Regulations and the policies of the Council, midwives who do not fully meet clinical experience requirements may be issued a provisional licence.
Please answer all questions pertaining to your midwifery experience. Please complete and attach Schedule 2 to assist the Registrar in determining and verifying your clinical experience. You will also need to provide three references. At least one of your referees should be able to verify your clinical practice experience.
If you have successfully completed a competency assessment and /or bridging program approved by the Council, you may be eligible for registration. Based on the results of the assessment, the Registrar may issue an active-practicing (clinical) licence or a provisional licence.
Please make arrangements to have your final report sent from the assessment program directly to the Registrar, if this has not already been done on your behalf.
The Council requires that all registrants in the active-practicing (clinical) class be certified in:
Certified instructors of these courses will meet these requirements, provided they have taught at least one course within the time frame required for currency.
Midwives are also required to successfully complete Opioids and Benzodiazapines: Safe Prescribing for Midwives offered through UBC Continuing Professional Development, Faculty of Medicine.
Please attach proof of current certification or instructor status in these continuing competencies.
Questions in this section refer to all previous experience, including experience in another profession or experience that occurred outside of Nova Scotia, or outside of Canada. All questions must be answered “yes” or “no”. For every “yes” answer, you must provide a detailed explanation on an additional sheet of paper attached to the application.
You must ensure that this section is signed and witnessed properly. The witness must be over 18 years of age. The witness is attesting to the fact that they witnessed you signing the form, therefore they must sign at the same time that you do.
A current criminal record check must be requested for your current name, as well as for all previous names by which you have been known. Criminal records checks must be dated within 6 months of their submission to the Registrar.
An original certificate with the regulator’s seal or a notarized copy may be submitted, otherwise, you may obtain one in person or on-line.
Criminal Record Checks for residents of Halifax, Bedford and Dartmouth:
You may apply in person, from Monday to Friday, at:
You must present two pieces of identification with your current address. The address must be within Halifax, Dartmouth or Bedford. Accepted identification: Nova Scotia Driver’s License or Nova Scotia ID Card and one other of: health card, birth certificate, passport, or social insurance number. The Criminal Record check costs $30 and takes approximately 10 days to process.
Important: You must submit the Criminal Record Check to Registrar in its original sealed envelope.
Criminal Record Check on-line:
A Criminal Record Check can be requested online at https://www.mybackcheck.com These online requests take only a few minutes and results are delivered to applicants electronically in less than 24 hours. The fee is $30. These certificates include a serial number. Applicants may e-mail the PDF version of the certificate to the Registrar or notify the Registrar of the serial number on the certificate.
Local Police Departments or RCMP detachments:
Criminal records checks can also be obtained through local police departments or RCMP detachments for the same fee. The results of these checks usually arrive within two weeks. Checks obtained from local police/RCMP must be provided to the Registrar in the original sealed envelope.
You must submit a minimum of three letters of reference from professionals or organizations with whom you have worked as a midwife. At least one of these referees should be able to verify your clinical experience as set out in your application. These three references must be provided by two of the following types of referees:
The enclosed forms should be completed and returned by the referee to the Registrar as follows:
Before submitting your application to the Midwifery Regulatory Council, please ensure that all items on this checklist are complete.
