Té’te’axam is aimed at educating, empowering, and encouraging families to take an active role in their health care and personal well-being. Our culturally relevant services honor oral traditions and practices, offering a pathway to connect with ancestral knowledge while navigating modern maternity care. Té’te’axam is for those planning to give birth in the hospital and still want to get care from a midwife.
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Prenatal Care
Clinical care is offered in the form of “co-care” meaning you are likely seeing your hospital based provider and a midwife, perhaps alternating appointments between seeing the 2. If opting for “co-care” you can expect about 5 visits prenatally with the midwife. You may also opt for primary midwifery care, where the midwife will do all your prenatal visits which is approximately 10-12 visits. If you choose this option, upon labor the midwife will transfer your records to your hospital of choice.
Topics covered in prenatal care includes: culturally relevant nutritional counseling, childbirth education, lactation support, newborn care, and various screenings with referrals for mental health support and relationship safety. Location of visits vary.
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Postpartum Care
Postpartum care is made up of 3-4 visits over the first six weeks postpartum, ensuring families have support for postpartum recovery, newborn care, emotional health, and lactation support. Clinical assessments (vitals and weight checks) will be done at every visit to ensure the parent and baby are doing well. Location of visits vary.
Why choose this offering?
It has been reported that many Indigenous families receive late or no prenatal care. Many face challenges in accessing prenatal care—such as far travel distances, not having insurance, or not having a culturally welcoming provider. In California, Indigenous women have higher rates of health conditions like high blood pressure and diabetes during pregnancy. According to the CDC, Indigenous people in the U.S. experience pregnancy-related deaths at a rate of 63.4 per 100,000 births, and nearly all (93%) of these deaths could be prevented. Indigenous families also have higher rates of preterm births and low birth weight babies.
These statistics are unacceptable and proof that the medical care system must change. Teméeku Midwifery believes that by centering cultural values and traditions, we can improve health outcomes and heal previous and future generations through wholistic midwifery care.
Do I qualify? You are planning a hospital birth and...
Face high insurance deductibles that limit access to care.
Are having difficulty finding a provider who can accept you into care (ie: you’re far into your pregnancy, you recently moved to the area, your insurance changed, you do not have insurance).
Live in areas with limited access to maternity care, including Indian Reservations in San Bernardino, Riverside, and San Diego counties.
Are seeking culturally respectful midwifery care, especially those who value Indigenous-focused care throughout pregnancy and postpartum.
If you answer yes to any of these statements, then yes!