More than half of the 53 studies were done at tertiary care facilities in high-income countries (Australia, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States of America). The study shows that when care for mothers and newborn babies is provided by midwives, as opposed to physicians working with midwives, the rates are lower for episiotomy (a surgical incision to ease a baby's delivery that can lead to complications) and the use of painkillers.
– Not only do midwives, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants do as good a job as doctors, they sometimes do better—and patients would agree, according to a World Health Organization bulletin. NBC News gives an example: When it comes to delivering babies, midwives use less drugs and perform fewer episiotomies than doctors, and the mother/child death-rate was no different among the two groups. Further, patients were often reported higher satisfaction with midwives. The findings come from a review of 53 studies conducted over the last two decades that focused on the quality of care, and "debunk the myth that more extensive use of mid-level health workers might lead to services of poorer quality," the bulletin reads, per Science Codex. "The quality of care they provide is comparable to physicians." To boot, these mid-level health workers are cheaper, take less time to train, and are more willing to work in rural areas. It's a conclusion that all countries, including the US "can exploit," says the WHO; to wit, NBC News points out a shortfall of 90,000 doctors is predicted in the US by 2020.