Midwifery of Manhattan, PC
Caring for Women
Cherishing Birth
Meet the Midwives:
Sylvie Blaustein, CNM, opened Midwifery of Manhattan in June of 2003 after practicing midwifery for over 15 years in hospitals and freestanding birth centers. She received her graduate midwifery degree from Columbia University in 1987 and began delivering babies at North Central Bronx Hospital. She then practiced at Maternity Center's Childbearing Center prior to joining a private practice at Beth Israel Medical Center where she stayed for five years. Sylvie joined a Faculty practice at Columbia University New York Presbyterian Hospital where she stayed for six years before making the move to St. Luke's-Roosevelt and opening her own practice. Sylvie and her husband have three grown daughters and two grandchildren, Maya and Will, born to their oldest daughter at the Roosevelt Birth Center in December, 2008 and February, 2011 into Laura Zeidenstein's welcoming hands.
Melanie Comer, CNM, has practiced full scope midwifery since 1995 after receiving her degrees from Hunter College School of Nursing and the University of Pennsylvania. Since that time, she has been privileged to care for women and their families in a rich variety of settings, including freestanding and in-hospital birth centers, public health clinics, and urban hospital practices. Before finding midwifery as her true calling, Melanie received a degree in English literature and theater from the University of Vermont and satisfied her thirst for cultural learning with extensive international travel. It was during her travels that she became committed to providing safe, supportive care to women during transformative times of their lives. Melanie first met Sylvie when she was the beneficiary of Sylvie's expert, compassionate care during pregnancy and the birth of her son. She was an early employee of Midwifery of Manhattan from 2003-2006 and is thrilled to return after a rewarding 5-year tenure in public health with Bellevue Midwifery Service. Melanie lives in New Jersey with her husband: an artist, graphic novelist, and teacher, and her son: her pride, joy, and inspiration.
Beth Kriegsman, CNM, obtained her nursing degree from Columbia University in 2001, and continued her studies at the University of California, San Francisco Nurse Midwifery program, graduating in 2004. She began her midwifery career at Unity Health Care in Washington, DC, fulfilling her National Health Service Corps commitment. She provided midwifery care to medically underserved women in many practice settings throughout the district. In 2007, she joined the Bellevue-Gouverneur Nurse Midwifery service, where she attended deliveries both at the Bellevue Birth Center and their labor and delivery unit. Beth lives in Hoboken with her husband and two sons, David and Benjamin. Benjamin was born at the Roosevelt Birth Center in August, 2009.
Amanda Segilia, CNM, is a graduate of Columbia University's Nurse-Midwifery Program. She has been with Midwifery of Manhattan since 2005. Prior to her career in Midwifery, Amanda worked in not-for-profit public health as well as a hospital Labor and Delivery Nurse in New York City. Amanda's combined passions of women's health and her undergraduate studies of anthropology inspired her travel to Nambia and South Africa, where exposure to the multitude of health and family planning issues facing women, cemented her desire to care for women through midwifery. Prior to working with Midwifery of Manhattan, she trained in a rural home-birth setting providing care to Amish and Mennonite families in Pennsylvania. Amanda lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two children, Gabe and Elise, who were born in the Roosevelt Birthing Center in October, 2007 and August, 2010.
Casey Selzer, CNM, joined Midwifery of Manhattan after four years in the public health midwifery practice at Bellevue Hospital, serving women and families from all over the world. A graduate of Columbia University's Nurse-Midwifery Program, Casey began her work in women's health a decade ago, as a birth and postpartum doula. She brings a life-long passion for family, community, health and creativity to her practice. Before finding her life's work in Midwifery, Casey studied art and worked as an organic farmer. Casey lives in Brooklyn with her husband, where she enjoys vegetarian cooking and frequent trips to the theater.
Laura Zeidenstein, CNM, DNP, is Director of the Graduate Midwifery Program at Columbia University where she teaches and guides our future midwives. She received her graduate midwifery degree from Yale University in 1988 and her Doctor in Nursing Practice from Columbia University in 2005. In her 23 years of practice, Laura has provided midwifery care in a variety of urban settings, both in hospitals and in freestanding birth centers, including Woodhull Hospital, Downstate Medical Center, the Maternity Center Association, and Elizabeth Seton Childbearing Center. Laura recently initiated a clinical project in Bangladesh to improve maternal safety in childbirth. She lives in Brooklyn with her son, who is an aspiring DJ.
