The following definitions apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(1) "Active practice" means 20 hours per
month in prenatal and postpartum clinical care, or minimum of six births
annually as the primary midwife;
(2) "Administer" means to dispense, apply,
and manage drugs, medical devices, and implants;
(3) "Department" means the Washington state
department of health;
(4) "Directly
assisted" means the act where a student midwife is learning the skills of a
midwife through hands-on clinical experience in gradually increasing degrees of
responsibility while under supervision of a licensed midwife or other obstetric
provider;
(5) "Lactation care and
services" means evaluation, problem identification, treatment, education, and
consultation regarding lactation and chest feeding to gestational parents and
neonates;
(6) "Nursing education"
means completion of courses for credit in a school that is approved to train
persons for licensure as registered nurses or licensed practical nurses, or
courses in other formal training programs which include instruction in basic
nursing skills, excluding nursing assistant training;
(7) "Postpartum" means the 12-month period
beginning on the last day of the pregnancy.
(8) "Practical midwifery experience" means
performance of tasks within the midwifery scope of practice, that is verified
by affidavit, testimony or other sworn written documentation that verifies that
the experience and its documentation is equivalent to that required of students
enrolled in an accepted midwifery education program;
(9) "Preceptor" means a licensed midwife or
other obstetric practitioner licensed by their state or jurisdiction to provide
maternity care who assumes responsibility for supervising the practical
(clinical obstetric) experience of a student midwife;
(10) "Primary attendant" means a student
midwife who acts as primary midwife making intrapartum clinical decisions while
under supervision of a licensed midwife or other obstetric provider;
(11) "Secretary" means the secretary of the
Washington state department of health;
(12) "Supervision" means the observation and
evaluation of a student midwife's practical performance. A supervisor must be
physically present on-site and available to intervene when a student midwife
performs any clinical care task at births and prenatal and postpartum care
exams.
