Williams D R, Kelley M A
American College of Nurse-Midwives, Washington, DC, USA.
Adv Pract Nurs Q. 1998 Winter;4(3):63-71.
It has been more than 70 years since the first nurse-midwives came to practice in the United States, and over 20 years since the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) established nationally recognized standards and core competencies for nurse-midwifery education, certification, and practice. Certified nurse-midwives are licensed in all 50 states and in the District of Columbia (DC) and have prescribing privileges in 45 states plus DC. More recent standard-setting activities include the establishment of a national mechanism for continuing competency assessment; adoption of the bachelor's degree as the minimum academic requirement for certification; development of national standards for education and certification of direct entry midwives; and placement of an 8-year time limit on certificates.
自首批助产护士开始在美国执业至今已有70多年，自美国助产护士学院（ACNM）为助产护士教育、认证和执业制定全国认可的标准及核心能力要求也已有20多年。注册助产护士在全美50个州及哥伦比亚特区（DC）均有执业许可，且在45个州及DC拥有处方权。最近的标准制定活动包括建立全国持续能力评估机制；采用学士学位作为认证的最低学术要求；制定直接入职助产士教育和认证的国家标准；以及对证书设置8年的期限。
