Midwives Getting National Exposure.

Coming soon to a living room near you: The ACNM and midwifery. Early this year, the ACNM and participating CNM practices will be launching a national advertising campaign featuring national and cable broadcast television spots, magazine ads, syndicated radio, and regional billboards that will begin to change the way people think about nurse-midwives. A new national advertising campaign from the ACNM focuses on highlighting the benefits midwifery care provides and breaking down common misconceptions.

It includes a television commercial that will air on the Lifetime Cable Television Network, which bills itself as "Television for Women." The commercial will instruct viewers to call the 1-888-MID-WIFE Practice Locator Line to find a nurse-midwifery practice near them. When the commercial is viewed, the Practice Locator Line will have live operators answering calls to handle the high call volume expected from this national exposure.

The television commercial features a cozy yet clinical environment in which a professional actress plays the part of a certified nurse-midwife. She explains how CNMs believe that women deserve, "more than five-minutes during a prenatal visit to be emotionally and physically comfortable."

The ACNM is also making the same high-quality ad materials used in the national campaign available to members who can customize them for their own local use. Sensitivity to practice budgets have been carefully considered, resulting in flexible applications. Your initial investment in your own advertising campaign could be as little as $295. You can call the ACNM Fax on Demand at 202-728-9898 and request an application (document 1006).

Video cassette that includes the television and radio commercials are available from Leslie Gonder at Brennan Advertising, 410-667-2500 or E-mail [e-mail].

Look for a schedule of when the ACNM commercial will run on the ACNM Web site at www.midwife.org.

--Quickening November/December 1997