FAQs

UNC CenteringPregnancy® is group prenatal care offered by UNC Midwives. This model of prenatal care takes place of traditional prenatal office appointments. UNC CenteringPregnancy® is group prenatal care + education + support, with the goal to build your own community, with an added bonus of spending 10x more time with a UNC Midwife than if you were to receive prenatal care in the traditional setting.

No. CenteringPregnancy® sessions are billed the same way as traditional one-on-one visits. Therefore, no additional fees are charged above whatever you would pay for routine prenatal care. If you have any questions about your insurance benefits or billing, please ask to speak to a financial counselor.

 All CenteringPregnancy® groups meet in a spacious conference room at the Weaver Crossing clinic in Chapel Hill and at Panther Creek clinic in NW Cary.

The sessions are 2 hours long. During these sessions, patients will have their vitals checked, baby’s heartrate and measurement of the fundus. We also have activities, speak with community guests, and have great conversations with each other.

CenteringPregnancy® groups typically last about 2 hours. During the first 30 or so minutes participants will take their own blood pressure and weight (after instruction) and then have an individual assessment by a midwife to measure fundal height and listen to the baby’s heartbeat. During this time, participants enjoy time to socialize. After the individual assessments, the group meets in a circle and we discuss a variety of educational topics pertinent to where participants are in their pregnancy. We can discuss whatever is most important to the group. Topics include childbirth preparation, nutrition, breastfeeding, mental health, and common discomforts in pregnancy. Sometimes we have guest speakers come for the end of the session. We have had yoga instructors, doulas, lactation consultants, pelvic health specialists, psychiatrists and pediatricians. We can tailor the educational topics to what the group wants to know! We have fun!

The CenteringPregnancy® session schedule is the same as one-on-one care. Groups meet monthly for the first 5 sessions and then every two weeks for a total of 10 sessions. Occasionally, holidays will require that we make a change to the intervals. Groups meet once everyone has delivered for a reunion.

If you know that you will miss a scheduled CenteringPregnancy® session, you can schedule a traditional one-on-one visit around the same time to take its place. If you know that you will miss numerous sessions, it may make more sense to do one-on-one care.

We asked that everyone wears masks during CenteringPregnancy® sessions. We are unable to provide drinks or snacks due to the Covid-19 restrictions.

Possibly… We try to have the same midwife and nurse co-facilitate all 10 of the group’s sessions. However, there are often instances when the midwife is unable to be at a session due to educational conferences or vacation. When this happens, one of the other midwives will substitute. Many patients also meet another midwife at an individual visit if they are having a problem between sessions or if they cannot attend a scheduled CenteringPregnancy® session. CenteringPregnancy® patients have reported that when they have a midwife at their birth with whom they have not met prior to the delivery, they are so happy with the experience of CenteringPregnancy® and felt they have bonded quickly with the midwife who is there at their birth.

Routine prenatal labs can be drawn before, during or after CenteringPregnancy® session. Ultrasounds are typically performed off site at one of our ultrasound units and can be ordered during a CenteringPregnancy® session.

We will be happy to see you in clinic for a problem visit between CenteringPregnancy® sessions.

Children aren’t able to attend the CenteringPregnancy® in-person sessions. This model of prenatal care is designed so that you can enjoy this time without distractions. Unfortunately, we don’t have any childcare available during our sessions.

YES!