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Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Abortion laws and the United States: why it matters

Debra
The circumstances around abortion in the United States has hit the news this month as September 1st saw the introduction of a new law in Texas state. The law outlaws abortions for anyone with a fetus over 6 weeks gestation where cardiac activity of the fetus has been detected, unless......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Love That Birth Physiology

Debra
Birth Physiology
Gaining knowledge of the anatomy and physiology around birth is an important aspect of a student midwife’s programme of education. It is also important to understand how the actions midwives take is related to the physiology. Molly is creator and teacher of the “Biomechanics for birth” courses, as well as......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Awareness Month

Debra
FASD
September is international FASD Awareness month, with FASD Day falling on 9th September, signifying the 9 months of pregnancy. This FASD Month, we are calling on people to ‘Think Differently’ about FASD.   “Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a lifelong disability that affects the brain and body of people......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Maternity & Midwifery Directory Launch

Debra
Directory
For maternity and midwifery services in the UK the pandemic seemed to make time stand still, if not go backwards. Home births cancelled, water births restricted, limited visitors (fathers were never allowed in when I was born). But time did not stand still.  Maternity and midwifery is going through its......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

A Holding Time Project call to arms: a collective portrait of breastfeeding

Debra
A Holding Time Project call to arms: a collective portrait of breastfeeding
During National Breastfeeding week at the start of August Improving Me, the NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s Women and Children’s Partnership launched the Holding Time Project. This involved a call for participants in an inter-disciplinary, multi-channel art project, developed by visual artist Lisa Creagh on behalf of the partnership. The focus......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

How do NHS midwives facilitate women’s alternative physiological births?

Debra
Alternative physiological births
In the print and social media heated debates have often taken place over interventions during birth. Some women and birthing people only want medicalised care where there is another group who want to choose less intervention birth. In this talk Claire discusses her PhD research, during which she explored how......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

It’s time to get equality in vaccinations

Debra
It’s time to get equality in vaccinations
As the summer months progress here in the UK, there continue to be reverberations in the press and on social media about COVID-19 and vaccines. Writing today, rates continue to rise, with another 230,800 testing positive within the last week. The vaccination rate for the adult population has 88% for......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Centred birth, hypnobirthing classes and preparing for birth during COVID

Debra
Centred birth, hypnobirthing classes
It has been challenging for pregnant women and birthing people over the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. As we know many resources were cut, including face-to-face preparation for birth groups. In this talk, “A lot more anxious and a lot more lonely” vs “more empowered: centred birth hypnobirthing classes and......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Nutrition and eating well from pre-conception to age five

Debra
– Firststeps Nutrition
First Steps Nutrition Trust: Celebrating 10 years providing independent, evidence-based information on nutrition and eating well from pre-conception to age five to support the work of UK health care professionals First Steps Nutrition Trust is a UK-focused, independent public health nutrition charity predominantly working in the early years. We’re 10......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Midwifery students’ experiences of being bullied on placement

Debra
Midwifery students' experiences of being bullied on placement
Bullying and mistreatment of students, and other members of the maternity team, has been an ongoing challenge across health services, both nationally and abroad. Tanya Capper, a midwifery educationalist from Australia, presents a study on the experiences of student midwives on clinical placement in the UK. The process of the......