The Issues Of The Midwifery And Obstetrics

Being a midwife refers to a profession where the midwife would work in partnership with the women throughout her pregnancy, labour and the postpartum period. Not only is being a midwife women-centred, however, their role also includes ensuring the partner and family members are prepared and aware of the process. Within a women’s health, the midwife should focus on health, family planning, nutrition, domestic and other health issues as the main priority is the

Midwives identify high risked pregnancies and they make referrals to doctors and other medical specialists.

Within Victoria there are multiple models of maternity care available to women. An initial discussion with the woman’s treating GP during the early stages of her pregnancy is critical in her decision-making about which model of care she will choose and this key discussion is essential in allowing a woman to make the first of many informed decisions throughout her pregnancy. According to a survey conducted by Stevens et al. (2010) only 43% of women felt ‘they were not supported to maintain up-to-date knowledge on models of care, and most reported that model of care referrals were influenced by whether women had private health insurance coverage.’ Many elements of these models of care differ: from location of care, degree of caregiver continuity, rates of intervention and maternal and infant health, outcomes access to medical procedure, and philosophical orientation such as natural or medical (Stevens, Thompson, Kruske, Watson, & Miller, 2014). According to the World Health Organization (1985) and Commonwealth of Australia (2008) there is a recognition that ‘85% of pregnant women are capable of giving birth safely with minimal intervention with the remaining 15% at potential risk of medical complications’ (McIntyre & Francis, 2012).

This research consisted of key informants and general informants. These general informants were leaders in the community, granny midwives and African American and European American health care professionals. These general informants came from the clinics and hospitals where key informants were from. The key informants from each region were women who were either pregnant or had a baby within in a year preceding the study. (Marjorie Morgan, 1996)

For hundred of years, women have wrestled with their womanhood, bodies, and what it means to be a woman in our society. Being a woman comes with a wonderful and empowering responsibility--giving birth. What sets us aside from other countries is that the process and expectations of giving birth has changed in our society; coming from midwifery, as it has always been since the early times, to hospitals where it is now expected to give birth at. Midwifery was a common practice in delivering babies in

Most Americans associate hospitals to be the standard place where women can give birth. However, women did not always deliver in hospitals. Gynecology, the medical practice dealing with the female reproductive system, did not emerge until the early nineteenth century. Before doctors came along, women used to hire midwives to deliver babies in the comfort of their own homes. In this paper I will examine the social, political, and scientific implications of how giving birth has transitioned from being a midwife’s job into that of a doctor’s. Furthermore, I will attempt to show how these implications intersect together to make birth a feminist issue. To support my argument, I will be referencing Tina Cassidy’s “The Dawn of the Doctors,” Abby Epstein’s documentary film The Business of Being Born, and Eesha Pandit’s article “America’s secret history of forced sterilization: Remembering a disturbing and not-so-distant past.” I argue that the processes surrounding birth are intersectional feminist issues because they are often manipulated by male figures pursuing money and authority, which ultimately compromises women’s health and power of choice.

The author is a nurse in a level two trauma facility in a community of approximately fifty thousand people in Oregon. The community is a college-town surrounded by a large agricultural area. There is a minimal ethnic diversity within the community. The diversity present occurs mainly from internationally students and faculty from the college. There is a growing population of women who desire low interventional births in the community. The author has worked on the labor and delivery unit of the hospital for the last 14 years. The hospital is the only one in the area to offer trial of labor services to women who have previously undergone a cesarean section. The unit on average experiences around 1000 deliveries annually.

Public health is defined by the World Health Organisation as ‘all organised measures to prevent disease, promote health, and prolong life among the population as a whole’ (WHO, 2015). Within this role of public health, the midwife has an essential role. They are in the best position to be able to guide

A constructive critique of the research into women’s experiences of becoming a mother after prolonged labour.

According to “Human Sexuality: Diversity in Contemporary America,” women and couples planning the birth of a child have decisions to make in variety of areas: place of birth, birth attendant(s), medication, preparedness classes, circumcision, breast feeding, etc. The “childbirth market” has responded to consumer concerns, so its’ important for prospective consumers to fully understand their options. With that being said, a woman has the choice to birth her child either at a hospital or at home. There are several differences when it comes to hospital births and non-hospital births.

Across the enormous continent of Africa, there are a myriad of birth practices, customs, and traditions. From spiritual ceremonies, consumption of certain fruits, blessing ways to having supportive birthing assistants are some of the very common and important customs from African countries, especially Ghana. One of the oldest and most widely recognized customs is midwifery. Midwifery is the act of assisting women and their families before, during, and after childbirth. Moreover, some midwives also perform abortions and aid in post abortion care

Not many large scale studies of the safety of home birth have been done in North America, perhaps because home birth in the United States and Canada is still considered “fringe” by many. To remedy this, in 2000, authors Kenneth Johnson and Betty-Anne Daviss conducted a large scale prospective study of planned home births in both countries. Few distinctions were made between nulliparous and multiparous women, but because it was the only large-scale study done in the United States, it is included in the review. The North American Registry of Midwives made participation in the study mandatory for recertification, and in the end 409 midwives agreed to participate. Each midwife obtained consent from their patients, who were then tracked through their pregnancies to six weeks post-partum. Data was sent back to the authors every three months. In total, 5418 women were included in the study. All were considered low-risk and planned to deliver at home. Low-risk was defined in this, and the subsequent studies cited, as singleton, vertex births at 37 weeks or more gestation, receiving prenatal care. Of those 5418 women, 655 (12%) were transferred to the hospital intrapartum (83.4%), mainly for failure to progress, pain relief or exhaustion. Following delivery, 1.3% of mothers and 0.7% of infants were transferred, mainly due to maternal hemorrhage or infant respiratory distress. Transfer rates of nulliparous women were four times higher than multiparous women.

Currently in the United States and many other countries, the two main birth attendants that help an expectant mother deliver her baby are midwives and obstetricians. Midwifery is an ancient career while obstetrics is fairly new. Midwives, according to stone carvings found, have been the main birth attendants since approximately the 1st century CE. Additionally, midwives are mentioned several times in the Old Testament of the Bible. It wasn’t until the 20th century that the profession and term “obstetrician” was created. In the 1920’s, the United States created the specific profession of nurse-midwifery in attempt to lower the high rate of both infant and mother mortality. And with the help of British nurse-midwives, they were able to accomplish this.

MD Marden Wagner said, “In every country where I have seen real progress in maternity care, it was woman’s groups working together with midwives that made the difference.” The Marriam Webster dictionary defines midwifery as “The art or act of assisting at childbirth”. The definition is a spot-on explanation. Midwifery is not very broad; it’s pinpointed as a specific job with detailed instructions that only deal with pregnancies. Many will argue to say that midwives only work with women who are having “normal-pregnancies”.(Goer, 2002). Normal pregnancies include a healthy mother and fetus, with no complications. “Approximately 10% - 30% of pregnant women will experience Bacterial Vaginosis (BV) during their pregnancy. An ectopic pregnancy happens in 1 out of 60 pregnancies. About 1% of all pregnant women will experience placental abruption, and most can be successfully treated depending on what type of separation occurs.” (Pregnancy Complications). Everyone is different, they handle pain in different ways, they have diverse fingerprints, they all have their own unique genetic material; evidently all pregnant women will experience each pregnancy they have differently from themselves and from other women. Many people will argue about the authenticity of a Certified Nurse Midwife’s education however, in reality “Certified Nurse-Midwives (CNM) are registered nurses, with a minimum of a

Partnership and Turanga Kaupapa play an essential role in midwifery care (Pairman, Pincombe, Thorogood, & Tracy, 2015). The relationship between the woman (and her whanau) and midwife should incorporate trust and respect, as well as recognise the equal partnership and expertise that each party possesses within midwifery practice (Guilliland & Pairman, 2010). Care can be individualised based on the woman’s holistic needs, mutual goals can be set, and informed consent facilitated (Guilliland & Pairman, 2010).