Lifetime's 'The Midwife's Deception' Makes Childbirth Even More Stressful

The midwife vocation is made up of trained professionals who help women with childbirth. However, a new movie from Lifetime teases the horror of having a midwife with evil intentions. Luckily, for all expectant mothers, The Midwife’s Deception is not based on a true story.

Lifetime is pretty good about announcing when is movies are drawn from headlines (because it intrigues people even more), but this film, premiering March 18, doesn't have that type of marketing. According to the Lifetime site, here's what the movie is about:

“Jina, a midwife, is a dream come true for seven-month pregnant Sara until secrets unfold and Jina may want more than only delivering the baby. Katie Savoy, Penelope Mitchell, Billy Armstrong, Nikki Leigh, Matt Clouston, and Katie McClellan star.”

If that short synopsis left you feeling wanting though, there is a bit more information out there about what The Midwife’s Deception will feature.

Besides the tiny synopsis of the film, there is also a short trailer for the made-for-TV-movie. In the trailer available on Lifetime’s website, there looks to be a tease of an answer to the secret the synopsis mentioned. It is fairly clear that Jina wants, at minimum, Sara’s child. During the clip, when a woman — who seems to be a friend of Sara’s — questions Jina’s intentions, she responds: “It’s easy, I want her baby.” However, it seems that Jina may want Sara’s whole life. In that same clip it would appear that she is lusting after Sara’s husband and tries to seduce him, as well. Judging from the clip, this movie feels similar to another recently released romantic thriller: When the Bough Breaks.

Despite the only trailer for the movie being just 30 seconds long, that is not all that can be gleaned from it. The clip also reveals that Jina is seemingly not to be trusted. While she clearly wants to steal Sara’s baby, she lies and says that Sara has nothing to worry about. Moreover, it is revealed she is also a bit of a pyromaniac, setting fire to what is presumably Sara’s home. The only other info that seems available about the movie is that it was filmed in Lexington, Kentucky. However, it is unclear if Lexington is actually where the fictional story takes place.

In the United States, real life midwives are actually pretty rare. According to radio program The Jefferson Exchange, only about 10 percent of births occur with a midwife present. However, that seems to be changing. While midwives are often associated with home births (as seems to be the case in The Midwife’s Deception), they can also be utilized in hospitals. In fact, as CBS notes, they are likely to play a larger role in the future of U.S. medicine because of concerns over rising medical costs coupled with doctor shortages.

This particular story is not based in reality, but there are isolated examples of midwives being occasionally blamed for a child’s death or having been accused of attempted murder. However, there aren't any examples of midwives kidnapping a baby after having assisted in the birth.

So no, The Midwife’s Deception is not based on a true story. However, as CBS noted, it would appear that midwives are becoming more common birth options within the U.S. Of course, it is obvious that no couple would want a midwife like the one from this Lifetime movie. Good thing this is only fiction.