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Rachel Maio

Certified Nurse Midwife

I came to Fort Wayne from the small town of Circleville, Ohio, a Buckeye from birth. I felt the calling to midwifery from a young age, which solidified in High School when I attended the home birth of a close family friend. In 2013, I graduated from The Ohio State University (OSU) with a Bachelor of Science in Medical Dietetics, a background that enables me to provide a holistic approach to care for families by supporting them in their goals for health and nutrition. 

I received my Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Mount Carmel College of Nursing and became a volunteer nurse at Holy Family Birth Center on the Texas-Mexico border. During my time there, I served a predominantly low-income, immigrant community, providing prenatal care and out-of-hospital birth. In addition to my duties as a nurse, I provided nutrition education to women, many of whom struggled with Gestational Diabetes, and I also educated women on the effective use of Natural Family Planning to avoid or achieve pregnancy. 

After completing my volunteer work, I took a position in the Neonatal ICU (NICU) at the OSU Wexner Medical Center, where I worked for four years. There I specialized as a transport nurse, assisting with stabilizing and transferring infants from the delivery room to the NICU. I received additional expertise on breastfeeding infants compromised by prematurity and prolonged NICU stays, and I remain passionate about supporting women in their desire to breastfeed their infants. During this time, I began midwifery school at The Ohio State University, achieving my long-time goal of becoming a nurse-midwife in 2019. 

While an undergraduate at OSU, I met my future husband, Colin. We were married in 2016. In 2017, we welcomed our daughter, Evelyn, and in 2018, our son, James. In my free time, I love to kayak, do Bikram hot yoga, and cook delicious vegan meals from fresh food grown on our family farm.Â