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About Risa

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My Philosophy

Your birth experience is all about YOU.  

My goal is to assist you as you cross over into motherhood, making this one of the most profound, exciting, and empowering growth experiences of your life.  As a midwife, I am your most valuable guide through your birthing experience. 

 

“ Keep doing your miraculous work, Risa! You will heal the world, one birth at a time."
Love,
Bill, Fumiko, and Kentaro
My Story

 

 

 

I am a Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM) licensed in New York State and New Jersey, and am licensed by the State of New York as a Nurse Practitioner in Obstetrics and Gynecology.

I graduated from Columbia University’s School of Nursing with a Master of Science Degree in Nurse Midwifery. 

I am honored to have received an academic title, Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine, at Hofstra University.  I am overjoyed to be able to teach medical students and residents the art of midwifery!

 

Was a clinical preceptor for Columbia University’s School of Nursing. Taught skills to nursing and midwifery students in several New York City hospitals.

 

Taught third - year medical school students about Midwifery, Birth Options, and how to ‘doula’ their patients.

I was an adjunct professor at New York University’s College of Nursing in New York City, honored to have taught midwifery students.

I write Blog posts about midwifery to keep pregnant women and babies healthy. I have also been interviewed for my opinions in various press and social media platforms.  

I have volunteered and counseled moms in their reproductive and general healthcare at Ronald McDonald House (when not delivering a baby)  for their “Women’s Wellness Night.” The moms who live at the house with their children (who are receiving treatments in nearby hospitals), get one night a month of complimentary services to soothe their minds and bodies. 

 

Before serving women and their families in the world of birth, I had a career in television news production. I attended Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications and graduated with a BS in Television Radio Communication. 

If you watched Baby Mama, starring Amy Poehler and Tina Fey, I was the birth consultant. I was also the birth consultant for Maze starring Rob Morrow and Laura Linney which boasts a Bradley Method® birth.

If you have not seen these films, I strongly suggest!

Featured in two episodes with my couples, in Baby Frank and Baby Richardson, on The Learning Channel’s TV program A Baby Story

 

My 'Positive Pain of Labor Workshop' was featured in the documentary, When Men Are Pregnant, on the French German documentary channel Arte-TV. Lectured, conducted workshops, and been interviewed about natural childbirth and conscious conception on WBAI-FM radio in New York City. Featured in Huffington Post, WNBCTVNews4ReadersDigest.com, Romper.com, Pix11News, NewYorkPost.com, WellRounded.com, sheknows.com, HelloFlo.com, mymommyvents.com, mother.ly, and publications including Woman's Health MagazineBigAppleParent, Parenting, New York Post, American Baby, Healthy Living, Hadassah Magazine, City Baby, UrbanBaby.com, C&JNutrition.com, The New York Guide To A Healthy Birth, and Midwifery Today. I am listed in the NYC Metro Guide to a Healthy Birth, published by Choices in Childbirth and a sponsor for La Leche League here in New York City. Check out my Press, Publications, and Blog Pages. 

 

I have worked in various television and film production roles however once I gave birth to my daughter I knew that I absolutely had to re channel my energies from broadcast to birth production.

Worked prenatally with pregnant teenagers in a not-for-profit adolescent health organization.

Developed and taught a workshop, “Making Good Choices for Safe Sex and Birth Control,” for middle schoolers. Career Day presenter, “What is a Nurse Midwife, and Why this Career may be Right for You,” for fourth and fifth graders.

 

I apprenticed with midwife Valerie El Halta and we taught Amish midwives midwifery skills in the cornfields of Indiana!

 

I received certification in1991 as a labor assistant, breastfeeding consultant, and instructor of The Bradley Method (R) of Natural Childbirth. In 1996 I also received certification in Gayle Peterson's Holistic Prenatal and Birth Counseling certificate program.

 

Many hours of academic and professional training and experience including both home and hospital births will have preceded my time with you on your unforgettable day of birthing your baby! I continue to stay well informed and educated in this amazing arena of childbirth.

One of my many passions has been to educate the public through the media to understand by positive examples that birth is not an illness! I believe that every pregnant woman deserves a midwife who is adept at listening, respectful, patient, experienced, and who has a lot to share and teach by example. Women need to feel cared for, respected, heard, and well informed during pregnancy, labor, birth, and beyond.

I believe birth is a healthy, transforming, and life giving catalyst for growth. I am writing a book about this very subject. Stay tuned!

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