Our Clinic

Our practice began in 1982 when Margaret Thompson, MD opened her solo practice after completing her training at Duke University in North Carolina. As one of the first women obstetrician/gynecologists in Austin, she worked hard to build her practice. She believed in a woman's intelligence and ability to make her own choices about her healthcare.

In 2004, Margaret began law school at the University of Texas, Austin, and reduced her hours in the office. She hired Christina Sebestyen, MD to join her to help caring for her patients. Christina and Margaret were amazed by their similarities - both committed to excellence in education (Harvard and Duke trained), and devoted to improving the situation of women through health care and public advocacy. Together, they continued the legacy of respect for women's choice in their healthcare.

In December 2007, Margaret completed her law degree and due to personal medical issues, she decided to retire in February 2008. Margaret asked Christina to take responsibility for her patients and the practice, and this transition took place in March 2008. Much of the staff transitioned at this time due to uncertainty of whether the practice might close. Thankfully, that did not happen - and the practice continues to thrive.

In anticipation of that transition, Christina began working with North Austin Medical Center (NAMC) to have Certified Nurse Midwives (CNM) credentialed to assist births in the hospital. Lisa Carlile, CNM had been caring for our prenatal patients for 6 years already and was ready to return to assisting births. After much determination and hard work, the hospital finally credentialed CNMs to work at NAMC in April 2008. Each CNM in the practice (Lisa Carlile, Kathy Harrison-Short, Liane Miller) then had to be individually credentialed which occurred on August 8, 2008. Since that time, they have been delivering babies at NAMC and receiving regular praise from the patients and nursing staff. As the only hospital-based midwifery practice in Austin, we are very proud of the service that they provide to the women of our practice.

We continue to listen to our patients as we grow and change. We are looking forward to adding "Centering"- a form of group prenatal care in which 10-12 women with similar due dates engage in monthly educational seminars which incorporate their prenatal visits. This form of prenatal care has been shown to reduce preterm delivery rates and return education to the prenatal visit.

Each of us as women is seeking a type of healthcare that suits our personality and philosophy. We hope that ours is a good fit for you and we look forward to welcoming you to our practice.