This website is intended for healthcare professionals

Midwives' employment rights

Suspension is a tool that can be used by employers in a variety of situations, for example while investigating an allegation against a midwife What rights do midwives have when they are suspended or...

A comment on kindness

As a student, I can say that I've seen both sides of the coin I've seen success, and in the same vein, failure I'm no stranger to failure: I failed my driving test twice before passing, and I failed...

Actions speak louder than words

Just a few weeks into his new role as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock unveiled his first major initiative: a consultation with health professionals (Department of Health,...

New years

New Year is a man-made concept, but nonetheless it is important as a way of marking progress through time, as well as enabling the celebration of birthdays and anniversaries January sees the start of...

Care in crisis

I have long had an interest in working for an organisation like Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) (MSF) As a child, I would devour my grandparents' copies of National Geographic...

Donor milk: Science and sensitivity

American humourist Oliver Herford once described charity as ‘the sterilised milk of human kindness’ Yet for more than a century the milk of human kindness has—quite literally—been used for charitable...

Pain management in labour and childbirth: Going back to basics

As rates of anxiety, tocophobia and post-traumatic stress syndrome increase, there is a need for health professionals to reflect, review and rethink how women could be better prepared for labour and...

Can continuity bring birth back to women and normality back to midwives?

There has been much research in recent years into midwifery-led models of maternity care, and this has produced considerable evidence that it can significantly improve outcomes for mothers and their...

What influences women to stop or continue breastfeeding? A thematic analysis

Breastfeeding is a natural form of infant feeding, but not all women breastfeed, and those who do may not necessarily feed for the recommended length of time (Feenstra et al, 2018) It is advised that...

Childbearing women's experiences of midwives' workplace distress: Patient and public involvement

The wellbeing of health professionals can be linked with the quality and safety of healthcare services (Hall et al, 2016; Royal College of Physicians, 2016) Midwives in particular can experience a...

Acupuncture versus antidepressants in the management of postpartum depression: A systematic review

Postnatal depression is a significant global health issue and affects 26–85% of postpartum women who experience the so-called ‘baby blues’ Of these, 10–15% have been found to deteriorate to a major...

New academic year, new challenges: Tips for student midwives to maintain momentum and motivation

The emotional and physical demands of the pre-registration midwifery programme should not be underestimated A ‘traditional’ degree generally has a 26-week academic year; however, since student...

Complementary Therapies in Maternity Care by Denise Tiran

As a midwife leading the way to raise the status of complementary therapy in maternity care, Tiran's latest book is a welcome addition to this growing body of knowledge, and is the culmination (but...

The value of evidence in change

Famous Florentine writer, philosopher and historian Niccolò Machiavelli once said that, ‘there is nothing more difficult to carry out nor more doubtful of success nor more dangerous to handle, than to...

IVF: A case of ‘less is more’?

Last month was the 40th anniversary of the first IVF birth Louise Brown was born in Oldham General Hospital in 1978 (BBC, 2018) Since then, more than 300 000 babies have been born as a result of IVF...

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