Recorded LIVE at the 71st ACNM Annual Meeting in Kansas City, Missouri! Our host Jessica Brumley sits down with Emily Malloy, CNM, PhD, a midwife from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Emily shares her incredible journey of advocating for and establishing water birth protocols within a major hospital system, which led her to conduct the first randomized controlled trial of hospital water birth in the US, published in 2025.
Together, they break down what the research actually shows: how water immersion acts as “the midwife’s epidural,” reducing epidural rates, improving patient satisfaction, and maintaining equivalent safety outcomes for low-risk birthing families.
Guest:
Emily M. Malloy, PhD, CNM, FACNM
Advocate Health, Aurora Sinai Medical Center
Assistant Professor
Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Waterbirth articles:
Malloy, E., Kram, J. J. F., Adefisoye, J. O., Forgie, M., Kleber, D., Scherer, M., Anklam, A., Hernandez, N., & Hanson, L. (2025). Hospital waterbirth for low-risk birthing people: findings of a randomized controlled trial. AJOG global reports, 5(4), 100558. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xagr.2025.100558
Malloy, E., Luff, A., Kram, J. J. F., Adefisoye, J., Forgie, M., Oliver, V., Scherer, M., Wolf, C., Chakrabarti, D., & Hanson, L. (2026). Characteristics Associated With Tub Entry and Birth in Water Among People Planning a Waterbirth. Journal of midwifery & women’s health, 10.1111/jmwh.70180. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.70180
The Discover Midwives Podcast was created to empower you with accurate, compassionate, and evidence-informed answers to your most pressing questions about pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and women’s health—delivered from a uniquely midwifery perspective. Our goals are to normalize conversations about reproductive health, offer clarity in a landscape saturated with misinformation, and build public trust in midwifery care!
Tune in, subscribe, and share your thoughts in the comments below!
Do you want to support our work? Leave a rating and review on Apple or Spotify to help us bring you more inspiring and informative conversations.
Screenshot this episode and share it on your socials!
Tag @discovermidwives + #DiscoverMidwives
Visit our website for more info and resources: Discover Midwives
Connect on Socials: Instagram — @discovermidwives
Facebook — ACNM Midwives
YouTube — Discover Midwives Podcast
The Discover Midwives Team Jessica Brumley, PhD, CNM — Host
Russell Chapa — Producer, Sound Engineer, Original Music
Presented by the American College of Nurse-Midwives
Brought to you by our sponsors: