BMidwif Midwifery

The focus of this unit is to identify, consider and develop the knowledge, skills and attributes required in providing care and support to women, birthing people and their families through pregnancy, birth, and the postnatal period.

This will include identification and understanding of physiological and psychological changes during the pregnancy continuum, and consideration of social, cultural, and spiritual influences on women, birthing people and families. The role of the midwife in relation to promoting positive health outcomes will be the foundation for this unit.

The unit aims to: (shared aims with Universal Midwifery Care: Birth, following Birth and Infant Feeding)

• To enable learners to develop knowledge and skills in providing the care and support that all pregnant, birthing and postnatal women and people, newborn infants and their families require, with reference to infant feeding and developing early parenting relationships.
• To explore the role of the midwife in optimising physiological processes, promoting positive outcomes, health promotion and supporting safe psychological, social, cultural and spiritual situations.

The intended learning outcomes (ILOs) and aims are all constructively aligned to ensure the teaching and assessment methods support the learners’ achievement of these to the highest standard. The assessment ensures that all aims and ILOs can be demonstrated as met during the assessment task and in order to facilitate learners’ understanding of the ILOs the following teaching methods will be used:

Synchronous classroom-based and online, and asynchronous online

Lectures

Seminars

Debate

Peer review

Case studies

Quizzes

Practical skills lab sessions

Simulation

• Understand the social determinants of health and develop cultural awareness of how these determinants impact on childbearing women and people in order to provide personalised care across the pregnancy continuum.
• Understand key concepts in health promotion and public health practice, and current public health challenges that are relevant to maternity care, including the relevance of health behaviour change theory, utilising local, national and international guidance and policy. 
• Describe the physiological changes occurring in pregnancy and identify minor disorders of pregnancy 
• Understand the role of the midwife in caring for birthing women and people and their families during pregnancy.

• Review and reflect on own practice and appreciate the importance of reflection to health and social care professionals and its relationship to the development of knowledge and self-improvement.
• Understand the importance of assessment in clinical midwifery practice and identify the specific role and responsibilities of the midwife when caring for women and birthing people during the antenatal period.
• Participate in a collaborative way in multidisciplinary decision-making in conjunction with women and birthing people and their families when planning place of birth and birth planning.

• Demonstrate understanding of effective verbal, non-verbal and written communication skills for facilitating positive experiences and informed decision-making across the continuum of care; placing all women and birthing people at the centre of care.
• Demonstrate understanding of the role of the midwife in planning and managing the care of all women and birthing people, including vulnerable families. 
• Demonstrate understanding of the importance of neighbourhoods in supporting birthing women and people and their families.

• Effectively utilise a range of learning resources including information technology.
• Demonstrates tools required for effective assessment of needs, problem solving and decision-making for universal care, as well as for those experiencing complex social factors.
• Develop skills in working effectively with others as a member of a team

Formative

Essay plan submitted and small group feedback workshops with lecturer review.

Indicative Reading List

Baston H, Hall J. (2018). Midwifery Essentials Antenatal Vol 2. London, Churchill Livingstone, Elsevier

Bowden J, Manning V. (2017). ‘Health promotion in Midwifery Principles and Practice’. London,

Taylor & Francis.

England C, Morgan R. (2012). ‘Communication Skills for Midwives.’ London,

Open University Press.

Laverack G. (2019). Public Health: Power, Empowerment and Professional Practice. 4th Edition, London, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.

Macdonald S, Johnson G. (2017). ‘Mayes Midwifery’. 15th Edition, Edinburgh, Elsevier.

Marshall J, Baston H & Hall J. (2019). ‘Midwifery Essentials: Public Health Vol 7’. Edinburgh, Churchill Livingstone, Elsevier.

Marshall J, Raynor M. (2020). ‘Myles Textbook for Midwives’. 17th Edition, Edinburgh, Churchill Livingstone Elsevier.