02 September 2015 02 Sep 2015

Additions to the public health evidence-base

Public health is a fundamental aspect of the midwife's role. Regular contact with women and their families during pregnancy and the immediate postnatal period offers a crucial opportunity to maximise health and wellbeing by delivering health promotion messages. Public health interventions during pregnancy may be universal, such as breastfeeding promotion, or tailored to the needs of individual women, such as smoking cessation advice or support with domestic abuse (Crabbe and Hemingway, 2014).