Maternity & Midwifery Forum

Birthrights

Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Personalised maternity care conference: Building on Ockendon

Debra
There is no question maternity services in the UK are experiencing struggles at this time. There is much that can, and needs to be, done to improve circumstances. In this article Dr Claire Feeley Lecturer (Research & Teaching)  from King’s College London provides views on the issues and discusses why......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Queen Elizabeth’s Royal births: transforming the monarchy

Debra
This week the UK is celebrating 70 years of Queen Elizabeth II on the throne. In this article Dr Jenny Hall, Editor, MATFLIX briefly examines the births of the royal children in the context of the time, and challenges others to take up researching history. _______________________________________________________________ In this week in......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Black Maternity Matters: maternity care improvement project

Debra
Last week two important reports demonstrating racism across UK Maternity services were released. In this week’s article Ann Remmers, Maternal and Neonatal Clinical lead, West of England Academic Health Science Network, shares a co-produced project to improve the care of Black women in the South West Region. _______________________________________________________________    In......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

The FiveXMore and Birthrights reports: individual and systemic racism

Debra
This week two key reports on the experiences of Black and Brown women and staff in maternity services has gathered much attention in the UK press this week. Dr Jenny Hall presents the content and considers the implications. _______________________________________________________________   Racism strongly exists in UK maternity services. The clarity of this......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

World Breastfeeding Week 2021

Debra
World Breastfeeding Week
Photo courtesy Public Health England World Breastfeeding Week aims to highlight the huge benefits that breastfeeding can bring to both the health and welfare of babies, as well as a wider push for maternal health, focusing on good nutrition, poverty reduction and food security. The event is organised every year......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Midwifery Education Practice in Uganda

Debra
Midwifery Education Practice in Uganda
Bike ambulance driver Grace Kakyo transports a patient in northern Uganda. Photo courtesy CA Bikes Alternatives to traditional ambulances are improving health access In the absence of an ambulance, patients — especially women in labor — have challenges accessing the nearest health facility. In some districts in Africa, women travel......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Conversations around race, racism and ’unconscious bias’

Debra
Conversations around race, racism and ’unconscious bias’
There have been a number of reports over the past year pointing to poor outcomes for black and brown women during pregnancy and childbirth. Benash Nazmeen, Specialist cultural liaison midwife and Illyin Morrison, founder of Mixing up motherhood, discuss the race, rhetoric and “unconscious bias” across maternity services. They explore......
Midwifery Feature Articles Midwifery News

Featured ‘Another Listen’ : Demands for respectful care across global maternity services

Debra
‘Another Listen’ : Demands for respectful care across global maternity services
Kay King, Executive Director for the White Ribbon Alliance in the UK, highlights the work of the global “What Women Want Campaign” and points to the in depth “Another Listen” report. This gives insightful responses of women’s expectations for humanised and respectful care across the world. In the most recent......
Midwifery Sector News

Informed Consent: Human Rights and Respect in Maternity Care

Paul
“This was never about blame, this was never about a particular doctor getting in trouble… this was about me wanting to understand what had happened to me and to make sure it never happened to another person.” The Montgomery v Lanarkshire Health Board consent case [2015] resulted in legally enforced......
Midwifery Feature Articles

New report spotlights how housing problems jeopardise women’s rights to safe maternity care

Paul
Photo by Johann Walter Bantz on Unsplash
A report published recently by the charities Birth Companions and Birthrights highlights the need for a more proactive, integrated approach to addressing the maternity care needs of women experiencing multiple disadvantages during pregnancy and early motherhood. Through in-depth interviews with women and professionals, the research found that, in almost every......