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About Aszani

I am trained as a nurse-midwife, and I have caught babies in homes, birth centers and hospitals. Right from the start, I wanted to offer the kind of care I yearned for when treating my own health: holistic, client-centered attention that focused on the root causes of problems.  

In 2003, I founded the first free-standing, Nationally-Accredited Birth Center in Wisconsin. Running my own business, I was able to meld integrative and conventional medicine, and clients responded positively.  

While at the Madison Birth Center, I began studying lactation. After years of hands-on experience with brilliant teachers, I decided that it was time to become an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), which I did in 2010. I specialize in complex nursing problems and low milk supply.  

After moving to Minneapolis to be closer to my grown children, I continued to study Functional, Herbal and Holistic Medicine. In 2015, I founded a clinic called Birch Tree Healing Arts with Laurie Radovsky, a well-known Integrative Medicine Family Physician. After recognizing the need for providers who could care for the complexities of tick-borne infections, I trained with Dr Radovsky. I found that the detective work of treating tick-borne illness was well suited to the way I already practiced. I continued my learning while shadowing in Dr Horowitz’s office with Nurse-Practitioner John Fallon, with Dr Bernard Raxlen in NYC and with Dr Chris Green in San Francisco. In 2018, I completed the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society Educational Foundation (ILADEF) training and I am listed as a referral on the ILADS webpage.

Ironically, after starting to treat tick borne illnesses, I got Lyme, Babesia and Bartonella while camping in Michigan. Like so many Lyme survivors, I have been through the wringer, and feel grateful to finally have the tick borne disease under control. 

Along the way I have continued studying Functional Medicine. I started looking more deeply into mold and environmental toxicity in 2016, and I’m now in a mentorship group with Neal Nathan MD and Jill Crista ND. Our group is comprised of 85 practitioners from all different disciplines around the world. It’s an amazing learning opportunity.

Now my practice focus is on Functional Medicine, the care of people with tick borne illnesses, mold toxicity, other complex health issues and lactation. I also work part-time as a member of the midwifery team at the Minnesota Birth Center.

Deep Listening is at the Heart of My Care

I use a Shared Decision-Making Model, which relies on sharing what is known from research, then discussing treatment options and alternatives. Treatment decisions are made together with you, the client. I do lots of education, and use an algorithmic approach to uncover the root causes of complex health issues. While working together, you will be able to see where we are getting traction, and where we still have work to do, using the tools I share.

When treating tick borne illness, I follow the International Lyme and Associated Diseases (ILADs) treatment protocol, which aligns with the Institute of Medicine (IOM) goal of reducing the impact of chronic illness at the individual and national levels by, among other things, treating the treatable. The ILADS Guidelines uses the GRADE system (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation), which is the system recommended by the Institute of Medicine. I am skilled at treating tick borne illness using herbs, nutraceuticals, lifestyle change, antibiotics and FDA approved drugs such as Dapsone, Disulfiram and Methylene Blue.

Training

  • September 16-20, 2013

    Applying Functional Medicine in Clinical Practice, five days of high-level training through The Institute for Functional Medicine. Minneapolis MN.

  • September 17, 2014

    American Holistic Medical Association Conference. Connection & Collaboration: Innovations in Patient-Centered Care Minneapolis MN.

  • October 15 & 16, 2016

    Columbia University Conference: Lyme and Other Tick-Borne Diseases: New Strategies to Tackle an Expanding Epidemic. Minneapolis MN.

  • 2016

    Mentored with Dr. Laurie Radovsky, my partner in practice, around vector-borne disease, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. Dr. Radovsky is well known throughout the United States for her expertise in this area, with over 15 years of experience.

  • September 22-23, 2017

    Minnesota Holistic Medicine Group Annual Conference-Inflammation, Minneapolis MN

  • November 4-6, 2016

    International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society Annual Lyme Disease Society (ILADS) Conference in Philadelphia PA.

  • November 10-12, 2017

    International Lyme and Associated Diseases (ILADS) Annual Scientific Conference: The Global Perspective, Boston MA.

  • May 19, 2018

    Minnesota Association of Naturopathic Physicians Conference: Integrative Chronic Infections Assessment and Treatment, Dr Paul Anderson ND Minneapolis, MN

  • June 3 & 4, 2018

    The Musculoskeletal System, Chronic Pain and Lyme Disease with herbalist Matthew Wood. UM Arboretum, Minnesota.

  • September 2018

    Completed the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society Educational Foundation (ILADEF) Practitioner Training Program. Training included didactic work shadowing Lyme practitioners. I shadowed -John Fallon NP at Dr Richard Horowitz’s Hudson Valley Healing Arts Clinic in Hyde Park, NY, Bernard Raxlan, MD of the Lyme Resource Center in NYC and Christine Green MD in San Francisco and Mountain View CA.

  • November 2-4, 2018

    International Association of Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) Annual Conference on Tick-Borne Diseases and the Immune System. Chicago IL.

  • May 14, 2019

    ENT Manifestations of Lyme Disease. ILADS Webinar with Dr Benjamin Asher.

  • May 17-18, 2019

    Minnesota Holistic Medicine Conference: How Environment and Lifestyle Impact Chronic Illness. Minneapolis MN.

  • June 21-22, 2019

    Great Plains Laboratory Organic Acid Test and Environmental Toxin Testing. Minneapolis MN.

  • April 21, 2020

    COVID-19 and Lyme: Questions and Answers with the Experts: ILADS Webinar with Dr Bransfield and Dr Horowitz.

  • September 17-18, 2020

    Minnesota APRN Coalition Third Annual Pharmacology Review.

  • April 24-25 2021

    A Comprehensive Review of Mold Toxicity and its Complications with Dr Neil Nathan and Dr Jill Crista.

  • May 23, 2021

    Dr Richard Horowitz and Dr Neal Nathan’s Certification Course for Treating Resistant Lyme Disease, MCAS and Mold in Clinical Practice.

  • August 26-29, 2021

    Integrative Medicine for Mental Health Conference. This 4 day conference had 25 speakers and 30 presentations covering a wide range of topics.

  • September 8, 2021

    Lyme disease Association/Columbia University Annual Scientific Lyme Conference.

  • September 12, 2022

    GOLD Learning Tongue-Tie Symposium

  • March 9, 2023

    Basic Life Support for Healthcare Professionals

  • March 23, 2023

    NRP - Neonatal Resuscitation Program, Advanced Provider

  • August 13-15, 2023

    International Lactation Consultant Association Conference

  • October 19-21, 2023

    ILADS Annual Scientific Conference in Boston, MA

  • April 18-19, 2024

    The Bale Doneen Method (preventative cardiology) With Amy Doneen and Bradley Bale

  • August 15, 2024

    Lactation Ethics

  • October 25, 2024

    Optimal Outcomes in Perinatal, Reproductive, and Sexual Health Conference

  • November 8-11, 2024

    American Association of Birth Centers Birth Institute Conference

  • November 14-17, 2024

    Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine 29th Annual International Meeting

  • July 2021 - Ongoing

    Mentorship with Dr Neil Nathan and Jill Crista ND. Case studies and ongoing learning with 85 practitioners treating complex conditions from around the world.

Scope of Practice

Nurse-Midwives have a wide scope of practice.

We are educated in two disciplines: midwifery and nursing.

  1. We have the ability to provide primary health care as well as specialized care for women, trans and non-binary people in a variety of settings (hospitals, homes, birth centers, private offices, public health care settings).

  2. We provide initial and ongoing comprehensive assessment, diagnosis and treatment. We conduct physical examinations; prescribe medications (including controlled substances), admit, manage and discharge patients, order and interpret laboratory and diagnostic tests, order home health care and the use of medical devices.

  3. Midwifery care also includes health promotion, disease prevention, and individualized wellness education and counseling.

  4. Midwives earn graduate degrees, complete a midwifery education program accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Midwifery Education (ACME), and pass a national certification examination administered by the American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB) to receive the professional designation of CNM.

  5. In Minnesota, Nurse-Midwives are independent health care providers (no physician supervision). We are licensed by the Minnesota Board of Nursing.

Information above is from the American College of Nurse-Midwives February 6, 2012 document entitled “Definition of Midwifery and Scope of Practice of Certified Nurse-Midwives and Certified Midwives”.