New Dawn Midwifery unexpectedly closes after 19 years

Posted on by Kate Lundquist

After 19 years of providing Asheville women with pregnancy and gynecology services, New Dawn Midwifery is closing. Jan Verhaeghe, founder and president of New Dawn Midwifery, is retiring.

“We are making referrals for providers, and we are offering care up through March 31. We have enjoyed every client in our practice,” Verhaeghe says.

The center offered prenatal care, home births, water births, hospital births, family planning, primary care and gynecology, although in recent years about 85 percent of its clients birthed at Mission Hospital. New Dawn was the only legally certified nurse midwifery practice for home births in Western North Carolina. Five certified nurse midwives worked alongside Verhaeghe, and thousands of babies have been safely delivered under their care.

Judy Major, doula and founder of the new WNC Birth Center set to open in April, noted the effect on the Asheville community.

“A significant loss to our birth community,” Major says. “For years, they have been the only practice providing home deliveries assisted by state-licensed midwives, and in the last two years the only 24/7 midwifery practice in our area.”

To read Verhaeghe’s statement to her clients and the public, go to newdawnmidwifery.com.

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10 thoughts on “New Dawn Midwifery unexpectedly closes after 19 years”

  1. Judy Major

    By way of clarification, WNC Birth Center is a public non-profit organization and therefore not owned by anyone. I am the volunteer founder and current President of the Board of Directors.

    • timothypeck

      I’d like to ask this volunteer founder and current President of the Board of Directors why this public non-profit organization is closing?

      • Able Allen

        Peck, the WNC Birth Center is not closing. As far as I know, they haven’t opened yet. It is New Dawn Midwifery, which is a private midwife practice, that is closing.

    • Able Allen

      Sorry about that Judy, thanks for pointing that out. I have made that correction.

      • Judy Major

        Thanks, Able, for pointing out that the WNC Birth Center will soon be opening and, by all indications, will be around for many years.

  2. willc

    Sad to see New Dawn go. I had 2 babies through them, and they both turned out to be human.

  3. Jenny Olsen

    None too soon. This was a horrible place filled with hateful people. We and many others we know left the practice before delivering because they were horrible. Retirements don’t come unexpectedly, I’m sure there’s more behind this!

    • willc

      What was so hateful about them? I found them to be compassionate, caring, people for both the babies they helped us deliver. I never saw any signs of anything other than pleasant, knowledgeable people.

      • Jenny Olsen

        How were they hateful? I could write a novel and I don’t feel lime it as they’re closed and it’s moot but they were surly, rough, obnoxious and yelled at me in addition to making huge mistakes.

  4. Eryka Page

    Does anyone know who to contact to access the records from my sons birth in 2015?

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