Make midwives valid option

Long before doctors, hospitals and insurance companies came on the scene, midwives acted as doctor, nurse and therapist to pregnant women.

But with the advent of modern medicine in this country, midwifery increasingly lost credibility, though it remained a respected profession throughout much of the rest of the world.

Today, few avenues exist for midwife accreditation, training and regulation. To make this much-needed option safer and more available to women, the profession needs a more definitive legal status.

Many modern women value midwives as an alternative to the bureaucracy of today's medical system, the cold sterility of hospital rooms and the conventional methods of obstetricians.

But because few avenues for accreditation are available, finding a midwife can be difficult.

Two types of midwives exist today, but only certified nurse midwives are recognized in all 50 states. The other type, direct-entry midwives, has legal status in only 29 states and can gain certification in only 17. Insurance companies will not cover births with only a midwife present, placing a burden on women who feel more comfortable giving birth with a midwife attending.

To protect both insurance companies and patients, this profession needs to be welcomed into the mainstream and regulated by a central agency.

Birthing is an intensely personal experience shared between a mother and her newborn. Women who prefer home birthing, especially those in rural areas with limited access to hospitals, should be able to choose that option and feel safe about it.

Hospitals, too, should take a cue from midwives' more personal approach to birthing. In recent years, some hospitals have prepared special birthing rooms to make the process more comfortable for expectant mothers.

Childbearing once was seen as a celebration for women, but as the experience became more medical, perhaps as the result of a predominantly male medical field, the emotional side of giving birth often is overlooked.

Validating midwifery via accreditation, regulation and coverage of midwife-assisted births under insurance plans will give more women the option to make childbearing as enjoyable as possible.

Grade inflation hurts graduates

It's the eighth week of the quarter, and by now you've figured out exactly how little work you have to do to pull A's in all of your classes.

This slacker mindset is something everyone has been guilty of at one time or another, and it is perpetuated by professors who hand out top grades to students like candy to trick-or-treaters.

The practice of grade inflation is not necessarily hurting graduates seeking jobs from employers who value practical over classroom experience, but people who go on to obtain higher degrees or pursue research careers likely could find themselves unprepared or even turned down for the positions they want.

This is college. No one said it was going to be easy. If it were, we wouldn't need to be here. Some people are here to obtain knowledge; some are here to obtain a degree. But no matter why we're here, professors should not make going to class a joke by handing out A's to idle students.

Professors distribute the grades. The inflation rate is in their hands. Though they are under pressure from disgruntled students and demanding administrators, professors should take the initiative to make grades mean something.