Objective: The Midwife is not only a simple performer of childbirth, but a care –giver in  one of the most important and beautiful  periods of woman’s life for  a woman and counselor for woman’s perinatal care. The relationship created between midwife and woman is usually characterized by bond appreciation, love, and trust.    Design: The aim of this study is to investigate the way in which midwives working in Obstetrical and Gynecological departments in public hospitals or in private and primary care, understand the meaning of midwifery care.  Method: Participants were 135 midwives who completed self-report questionnaires about their sociodemographicdata, altruism ( altruism scale) and the importance of midwifery care (NDI-24-GR). We studied the total score and the subscales clinical work and the patient’s needs. We used non- parametric methods. The level of statistical significance was set at p = 0,05. Results: Midwives showed high levels of altruism (28,04 ± 4,59) and perceptual significance of care (46,26 ± 14,53). Subscale scores in clinical work and patient needs were respectively 30,34 ± 12,07 and 15,92 ± 4,52. Altruism was proportional to the importance attributed to the care (correlation at p <0,001). The midwives who had more years of experience showed highest score in the range of care.  Conclusions: Midwives have high levels of perception of their role and importance of care provided to the woman, both in purely clinical work, and in terms of emotional needs of women. They also show high levels of altruism.