Midwives

Melissa Alexander

C.N.M, M.S.N.

“Honoring the meaning of the word midwife-with woman-by developing a trusting and mutual relationship with women in support of their health across their lifespan.”

Melissa Alexander has lived in Southern California for over ten years. She began her career as a women’s health nurse in 2004. Melissa decided to further her education and become a Certified Nurse Midwife; she attended Frontier Nursing University and graduated with honors in 2017. She joined the practice the same year and has been enjoying serving the women of Orange County. Melissa has 2 sons. One lives on the East Coast but they still have a teenager at home. Melissa and her husband enjoy spending time at Disneyland and they travel as much as possible.

● Sees Patients in Irvine, Laguna Hills, Mission Viejo, Tustin.

Lisa B. Sherwood

C.N.M, M.S.N

“Empowering women to trust their bodies and to achieve their desired birth experiences”

As a native of Southern California, Lisa is thrilled to return home and serve the women of Orange County with midwifery care and childbirth options. Her nursing career began as a Labor and Delivery nurse for 20 years, during which time she gained knowledge of the birth process and respect for childbearing women. Her passion for women’s health care led her to further her education at  the University of Southern California where she became a Certified Nurse Midwife and Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner.  She has spent the last fifteen years offering women childbearing options, providing them with support, and empowering them to partner in decision-making regarding all health care choices, especially childbirth. Her sincere hope is to join with the physicians of OCWMG to provide the best care alternatives to women.

In her free time, Lisa enjoys spending time with her husband of over 30 years and her two adult children, who are indeed the loves of her life. She enjoys many creative outlets, her favorite being that of glass fusing.

Languages: Spanish

● Sees Patients in Irvine 16305, Laguna Hills, Mission Viejo.

Cambria Tuttle

C.N.M, M.S.N.

“Embracing the midwife/patient relationship through empowerment, compassion and advocacy for total health wellness across the lifespan.”

Cambria Tuttle has lived throughout Southern California all her life. She’s originally from Murrieta, CA, and completed her undergrad in Riverside, and then a moved to Orange County where she began her nursing career at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach. She attended CSUF’s Certified Nurse Midwifery and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner program during her time as a nurse at Hoag and she’s very excited to start her journey as a midwife at OC Women’s Medical Group.

Her passion to serve women and their families was ignited by her own experiences growing up and the lack of well-rounded care she received. It is her goal as a provider to give women all-encompassing care, the birth experience they desire and empower them through all walks of their healthcare journey.

Aside from loving what she does for work, she enjoys traveling with her husband, running, and reading. Two of her best memories have been marrying her husband in Belgium and running across a marathon finishing line.

● Sees Patients in Irvine 16305, Laguna Hills, Mission Viejo, Foothill Ranch

Jessica Parris

C.N.M., M.S.N.

“Honoring the sacred journey of womanhood, from adolescence through menopause, by promoting education, empowerment, and advocacy.”

Jessica has been working in Women’s Healthcare in Orange County for over a decade. She went into the field after the preterm birth of her daughter in 2007 when she felt a void in her own support and education while navigating the process of fertility, cycles, pregnancy and birth. She began her journey of empowering women as an Internationally Certified Childbirth Educator/ Lactation Educator and DONA Certified Labor Doula while working her way through nursing school as a single mom. She graduated from Concordia University Irvine’s Accelerated Bachelor’s in Nursing program and worked as a Labor and Delivery Nurse for 7 years before becoming a Certified Nurse Midwife and Board-Certified Woman’s Health Nurse Practitioner through the Cal State Fullerton program. Her desire to support and advocate for breastfeeding moms also led her to become an Internationally Board-Certified Lactation Consultant. Jessica is excited to be joining OCWMG to fulfill her calling of being “with women” as they encounter various milestones from adolescence to pregnancy to menopause.

When she is not working, Jessica loves to travel with her husband and 3 kids as they attempt to visit all 50 states in the US. She is an avid USC football fan and loves throwing theme parties, like her annual Miss America Pageant Party. She also enjoys staying up to date on politics, a nod to her first degree in Public Policy from USC, and feels strongly about political advocacy for women and their healthcare. She destresses by hanging out with her family at Disneyland, enjoying So Cal beach days, or taking weekend train trips up or down the coast with her husband.

• Sees Patients in Irvine 16305, Laguna Hills, Mission Viejo

Mallory Munroe

C.N.M, M.S.N.

“Facilitating woman-led, personalized care to meet the unique needs and desires of women through pregnancy, birth, and beyond.”

Mallory was born and raised in Orange County and is honored to serve the women of her own community. Her passion for Women’s Health started at a young age and has deepened throughout her years of experience. After working for 8 years as a Postpartum and Labor & Delivery nurse, she graduated from Cal-State Fullerton with a master’s degree in nursing to become a Certified Nurse Midwife and Board-Certified Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner.

Her love for midwifery stems from a belief that women’s bodies are magic! She is honored to have the responsibility of ensuring safety while bearing witness to the strength of women as they birth on their own terms. She desires to empower women through advocacy and education and believes in validating the unique wishes of birthing women while helping them safely navigate towards their goals. Throughout her career, she has consistently worked to improve birth experiences for the women she served and is honored to be continuing that sacred work with the midwives of Orange Coast Women’s Medical Group.

Outside of her work as a midwife, Mallory enjoys traveling, dancing, surfing, playing with her dogs, and spending time with her friends and family.

Languages: English, Spanish

Sees Patients In: Foothill Ranch, Irvine, Laguna Hills.

Jennifer Lapointe

MSN, CNM, WHNP-BC

Born and raised in Southern California, Jennifer was a Labor and Delivery nurse in Long Beach for 7 years before graduating with Honors from California State University, Fullerton’s Certified Nurse Midwifery and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner program in 2014.

Outside of her family, her passion is women’s health care. Helping families bring a new human into the world is an amazing honor to Jennifer. Her goal as a midwife is to help families bring their child into this world as they plan and as safely as possible. As pregnancy is a small portion of someone’s life, it is a small portion of their healthcare needs. Jennifer enjoys working with people to manage contraception, fix bleeding issues, improve menopause symptoms, evaluate fertility struggles, and of course, annual exams. She has additional training in diagnosis and management in chronic pelvic pain.

In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family and the chaos that comes with having 3 kids.

Languages: English

Ciara Knerr

CNM

After completing her degree in Education, Ciara discovered the world of women’s services after the birth of her first daughter and their breastfeeding journey. From there she was all in and wanted to serve others like her. She knew she wanted to become a Nurse Midwife. After moving back to California from Nevada, she began birth assisting at a freestanding birth center. During this time, she worked to earn her nursing degree from Concordia University Irvine. Ciara began working as a cardiac nurse and then transitioned to a labor and delivery nurse. After completing her master’s in nursing program at Cal State Fullerton, Ciara began working as a midwife at a freestanding birth center. Ciara is excited to bring her diverse background to OC Women’s Medical Group.

Ciara is married to her high school sweetheart and together they have many reptiles, a mini labradoodle, and three children. You can find them out on the softball field most weekends. Whenever there is a spare minute, Ciara is crafting, she especially enjoys sewing, knitting, and embroidery.