
Kaz (Karen) McKinley-Jones
Becoming a midwife has been a journey for me. Arriving at Queen’s University in 1989 with a desire to be in health care, I was not able to see any direction that appealed to me. Then I had my daughter, Caitlyn, in 1992 and the path became clearer. I began teaching childbirth classes with Childbirth Kingston in 1994, soon after accompanying women and families as labour support and offering breastfeeding support. Completing my Psychology degree in 1996, I was accepted to the Midwifery Education Programme at McMaster University in 1997 and my daughter and I moved to Hamilton. Returning to Kingston as a student and in 2001 as a Registered Midwife has allowed me to come full circle. I look forward to meeting, learning from and caring for women and their families as I continue this journey.

Kelli Siegwart
After many years of pursuing my passion to become a midwife, I am honoured to be serving women and their families in the Kingston region. I am originally from Thunder Bay Ontario and it was there, at Lakehead University where my journey into the world of midwifery began. While completing a degree in Anthropology, I became fascinated with various birthing traditions and infant feeding practices from around the world. It was not long before I was volunteering with the local midwives, working with the midwifery consumer network and applying to the Ontario program. I also trained as a Doula and was fortunate enough to attend births in this capacity in Thunder Bay and Calgary.
I received my Honours Bachelor of Science in Midwifery from Laurentian University in Sudbury in 2005. I felt privileged to share in many women’s birth experiences and to work with amazing midwives during the clinical portions of my studies. My placements brought me back to Thunder Bay, to Mississauga, Brampton and Kingston as well as to Pikangikum Ontario (a small, northern town accessible only by plane). Kingston has now been home for the past 10 years. My husband and I and our two daughters enjoy all the region has to offer. I feel privileged to work with such an amazing group of women and I find caring for Kingston women and their families immensely fulfilling.

Susan Hubbard
My family and I moved to Kingston (from Portugal) in order that I might begin working with the Community Midwives of Kingston. It was difficult for our family (3kids, a husband and a cat) to leave our life of sunshine and a house by the sea and we knew that we would have to find somewhere really wonderful to compensate for all that we were leaving behind. I had heard great things about the Kingston midwives and the work they had done to firmly establish midwifery in their community. I was thrilled when I was offered a position with this practice.
I remain very excited about this opportunity to be a midwife in Kingston. I have met many wonderful women and had the privilege of walking with them and their families through pregnancy and birth. It is the first time I have had privileges at a teaching hospital and I continue to find it an interesting and vibrant atmosphere where staff and students are constantly learning together. I have had the privilege of being at home with women as they birth and I find it a great honour to be welcomed in and allowed to help that family grow within the warmth and security of their own home.
For me midwifery is a vocation and I feel incredibly blessed with each opportunity I have to care for women and their families as they go through the life changing experience of birth.
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Alyssa Byers-Heinlein
I was born and raised in Fredericton, New Brunswick. While New Brunswick is a province with many virtues, due to the lack of governmental support there were/are no registered midwives. As such, I was not exposed to the profession of midwifery until I neared the end of my undergraduate degree at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. While I enjoyed my degree in molecular genetics, within five minutes of researching midwifery in Canada I knew that supporting women through their pregnancies, birth and postpartum period was what I wanted to do with my life. I entered the Midwifery Education Program at McMaster University in 2010 and graduated in May 2014. Throughout the program I was fortunate to work with amazing midwives throughout communities in Ontario (Peterborough, Toronto, and Kingston) in addition to placements in communities in both rural and suburban Africa. I spent my final year of study with the Community Midwives of Kingston, and was thrilled and honoured to begin my career with the same midwives and community that encouraged, supported and allowed me to grow both personally and professionally.
Throughout my career I will strive to emulate the words of the 5th century BC philosopher Lao Tzu: “You are a midwife. You are assisting at someone else’s birth. Do good without show or fuss. Facilitate what is happening not what you think is happening, If you must take the lead, lead so that the mother is helped, yet still free and in charge. When the baby is born, the mother will rightly say, we did it ourselves."
Iryna Didyk
Hello, my name is Iryna Didyk and it is my great delight to be a part of the Community Midwives of Kingston! My path to midwifery in Canada started from a small university town in Ukraine, Ternopil, where I studied Medicine. After medical school, I enrolled in an Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency program at the local hospital for one year. The time spent in the program, though short, was very rewarding and ultimately, shaped my career pursuit. After immigrating to Canada with my husband, I became keenly interested in the concept of natural birth hence midwifery became a natural extension of my professional interest, belief and passion. Subsequently, I received Bachelor of Health Science in Midwifery from McMaster University in 2009. During my training, I had the opportunity to do my placements in Hamilton, Grimsby, Niagara Falls and Welland supporting women through their preferred birth experiences either at home or in a hospital. Upon completing my program, I practiced in a busy Midwifery clinic in Hamilton before relocating and settling down in Kingston in 2012.
Here in Kingston, my husband and I had our two daughters delivered by midwives. Undoubtedly, being a midwifery client further broadened my understanding of midwifery care and I believe will improve my clinical approach in care for my future clients. We hope to make Kingston our home for many years to come. The beauty of this historic limestone city and reasonable distance to Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal are very endearing to my family and me. I look forward to meeting you all.
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Mico Devos
Alison Gorringe
I'm Alison and I am from Wales in the UK. I came to Canada in 2010 with my husband, our daughter and our son. Both our children are adults now and our daughter has given us a gorgeous grandson who is 15 months old. I was at his birth but I was not a midwife that day, I was a mum (haha). I left that to my midwifery colleagues.
I have been practicing midwifery for 15+ years and I've enjoyed every minute of it. After working as a registered nurse, I decided to pursue a career in midwifery which is my absolute passion. I completed my Bachelor’s degree at the University of Glamorgan in Wales, and then worked on an obstetric unit in my home town. As well as a hospital-based midwife, I've also worked in the community and a stand-alone birth centre.
I completed the International Midwifery Pre-registration Program at Ryerson University in 2011. My clerkship placement was with Barrie Midwives where I continued to work for 3 years. I am excited to be working with the Kingston midwives and I look forward to meeting you all soon.
Sarah Chisholm
Greetings! I was born and raised in Toronto. My passion for people and places, lead me to Halifax to study International Development and Spanish at Dalhousie University, where I spent a semester abroad in Havana, Cuba. After focusing on large scale issues like social justice and sustainability for my undergrad, I turned my focus to individual health and pursued a diploma in Holistic Nutrition and studied under a medical herbalist. During that time, I ran cooking and gardening programs for at risk youth, and began volunteering with the Single Parent Centre of Halifax as a doula. It was my experiences as a doula that ignited the fire that lead me to Midwifery. Bearing witness to the power of individuals during childbirth, made me passionate about obtaining skills that support people feeling safe and in charge during their childbearing experience.
Through my training, I’ve worked in the communities of Stratford, Ajax, and Toronto, in rural, urban and suburban settings, with a wide range of families from all over the world. I’m continually humbled by this work, and in awe of the individuals I work with. I look forward to meeting you and am grateful to be assisting you on this journey.
Claire Portigal
“We must celebrate ourselves for our courage to birth. The real question becomes not, “Have you done your breathing exercises?” but rather, “Can you love yourself no matter how you birth, where you birth or what the outcome?” ~ Claudia Panuthos
I have caught babies in Russia, on both coasts of the USA, Northern and Southern Manitoba, Calgary, along the Hudson Bay coast in Nunavik, in the Ottawa Valley, Belleville and now Kingston! I am so happy to be living and working in this beautiful and historic region and with this amazing community of people. I have so much gratitude for being able to watch and help people (big and small) grow and learn during the magical year of birth. The surprises, the diversity of experience, the intimacy of our relationships with our clients and of course, the juicy, little babies, are my favorite parts of this profession.
When I am not working, I am planning adventures, experimenting with cooking and baking, gardening and/or floating in lakes with my daughter and my dog.
Professional photos by www.lfphotography.com
Rim Artin
I am motivated and enthusiastic to work in the field of women’s health because I am interested in helping women stand up for what they need, being empathetic to their needs, and caring for their families.
My journey to become a midwife in Canada started twenty years ago in Aleppo University in Aleppo, Syria. I graduated as a Medical Doctor in 1997, then in 2004 as an obstetrician/gynecologist. I chose obstetrics because it is a
happy branch of medicine. It is about life, not diseases. Every day since then I have enjoyed helping families create a healthy and strong new human and supporting the expanded family in their transition. Working with women during this emotional and spiritual journey gives me great fulfillment and I enjoy the relationship as it changes throughout the pregnancy, delivery and postpartum. It is a pleasure to share the parents’ joy, learning and happiness at this time in their lives.
I practiced in my own private obstetrics and gynecology clinic in Aleppo, where I consulted, and provided diagnoses and treatment to pregnant and post-partum women and families; I also delivered my clients' babies at the local hospitals; and I worked in a government multidisciplinary clinic where I offered diagnoses, treatment, and consultation on all issues related to reproductive health. These three parts of my practice continued for 11 years until I left Syria in 2015.
After many years of practice and my journey to Canada my enthusiasm and passion to helping women and delivering babies is still as strong as when I started. This passion is what prompted me to continue my path to working with women. In 2017 I enrolled in the International Midwifery Pre-registration Program (IMPP), completed my placement in Kitchener-Waterloo, and in 2018, I graduated as a registered midwife. I am so excited to join this practice in Kingston and to work with the very talented, professional and compassionate team. I am looking forward to meeting you soon!
Alysha
Graham
Hi! My name is Alysha, and I am so excited to be working with the Community Midwives of Kingston!
Before midwifery, I pursued a degree in Women and Gender Studies at the University of Toronto. I was passionate about finding a way to address issues of social justice in healthcare. When I heard about midwifery, I knew I had found my path. I graduated with a Bachelor of Health Sciences in Midwifery from Laurentian University. During my studies, I cared for families in Peterborough, Guelph, Kingston and Barrie.
The thing I love most about this work is seeing the incredible strength of my clients as they become parents and grow their families. I strive to support families through this journey by always providing information, options and respect. I am looking forward to meeting you all!
Romaine Abrams
My name is Romaine. I have been a Registered Midwife for fourteen years. My first six years of Midwifery practice were in Guyana, where I was born. While practicing Midwifery there, I had the privilege of working in many different settings.
When I came to Canada, my desire to continue Midwifery never ceased. I pursued my dream by enrolling into the International Midwifery Pre-Registration Program at Ryerson University in Ontario and successfully completed this program in August 2011. In February 2012, I joined the Saskatoon Health Region Midwifery team where I continued to work until January 2020.
I thoroughly enjoy being a Midwife and cannot imagine doing anything else. As a Midwife, I will ensure all the women in my care are respected, empowered and delivered with dignity. I am excited and looking forward to supporting Kingston families for the best Midwifery experience.
Alice Ryan
I am thrilled to working at Community Midwives of Kingston and serving the community as a midwife. I am originally from Ottawa and am so happy to be back in Eastern Ontario.
My path to midwifery began during my undergraduate studies in international development where I focused my learning on global health specifically looking at reproductive justice. During this time, I became involved with a not for profit organization providing midwifery services in rural Uganda and was inspired by this work. After training in Sudbury, Oshawa, Ottawa, Pembroke and Kitchener-Waterloo I graduated from the Midwifery Education Program with Honours at Laurentian University.
In 2017 I took a break from the midwifery education program to have my son and was fortunate to experience midwifery care from a client’s perspective. This experience enriched my appreciation of the beauty and enormous impact pregnancy and birth have on clients and their families.
My goal as a midwife is to provide compassionate, client-centred care through informed choice. I feel privileged to be accompanying you and your family through this life changing experience of pregnancy, birth and new parthood. Thank you for including me in your care, I look forward to meeting you.
Cassandra Santoni
I am thrilled to be starting my midwifery career at Community Midwives of Kingston. I was born and raised in Kingston, and it is a dream come true to be able to serve this incredible community as a Midwife.
I began my studies in Life Sciences at McMaster University, where I gained insights and experiences that led me to discover the wonderful work of midwives. I continued my studies at McMaster in the Midwifery Education program and completed clinical placements in Kitchener-Waterloo and Hamilton. I am beyond grateful to the midwives and families I have worked with and learned alongside.
I strive to provide quality evidence-based care that promotes health teaching, prioritizes client wellbeing, and honours individual choice. It is a privilege to care for clients during the physical changes and emotional experiences that occur throughout pregnancy and the transition to parenthood. I was drawn to this fulfilling profession because of the opportunity to support individuals and families during both the joyful and the challenging aspects of pregnancy, and all the moments in between.
In my spare time, you may find me outside getting fresh air and exercise on a long walk or while cycling, flipping through a cookbook to find a new recipe to try, or with a great book in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. I look forward to supporting you on your journey through pregnancy!