International Day of the Midwife
5th of May 2023
This year's IDM theme, 'Together again: from evidence to reality' is a nod to the upcoming 33rd ICM Triennial Congress, where the global midwife community will come together for the first time in more than five years. It is also honours the efforts of midwives and their associations to action critical evidence like the State of the World’s Midwifery (SoWMy) 2021 towards meaningful change for our profession and the women and families we care for. International Confederation of Midwives
UpToDate
Cochrane library
Articles
Breastfeeding
Midwifery practice
Research
E-books
E-journals
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Cochrane library
Support for healthy breastfeeding mothers with healthy term babies
When 'breastfeeding only' support is offered to women, the duration and in particular, the exclusivity of breastfeeding is likely to be increased. Support may also be more effective in reducing the number of women stopping breastfeeding at three to four months compared to later time points. For 'breastfeeding plus' interventions the evidence is less certain. Support may be offered either by professional or lay/peer supporters, or a combination of both. Support can also be offered face‐to‐face, via telephone or digital technologies, or a combination and may be more effective when delivered on a schedule of four to eight visits. Further work is needed to identify components of the effective interventions and to deliver interventions on a larger scale. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews – Intervention 22 October 2022
Interventions for preventing mastitis after childbirth
There is some evidence that acupoint massage is probably better than routine care, probiotics may be better than placebo, and breast massage and low frequency pulse treatment may be better than routine care for preventing mastitis. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews – Intervention 29 September 2020
Treatments for breast engorgement during lactation
Although some interventions may be promising for the treatment of breast engorgement, such as cabbage leaves, cold gel packs, herbal compresses, and massage, the certainty of evidence is low and we cannot draw robust conclusions about their true effects. Future trials should aim to include larger sample sizes, using women ‐ not individual breasts ‐ as units of analysis. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews – Intervention 20 September 2020
Oral galactagogues (natural therapies or drugs) for increasing breast milk production in mothers of non‐hospitalised term infants
Due to extremely limited, very low certainty evidence, we do not know whether galactagogues have any effect on proportion of mothers who continued breastfeeding at 3, 4 and 6 months. There is low‐certainty evidence that pharmacological galactagogues may increase milk volume. There is some evidence from subgroup analyses that natural galactagogues may benefit infant weight and milk volume in mothers with healthy, term infants, but due to substantial heterogeneity of the studies, imprecision of measurements and incomplete reporting, we are very uncertain about the magnitude of the effect. The authors are also uncertain if one galactagogue performs better than another. With limited data on adverse effects, they are uncertain if there are any concerning adverse effects with any particular galactagogue; those reported were minor complaints. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews – Intervention 18 May 2020
Schedules for home visits in the early postpartum period
The evidence is very uncertain about the effect of home visits on maternal and neonatal mortality. Individualised care as part of a package of home visits probably improves depression scores at four months and increasing the frequency of home visits may improve exclusive breastfeeding rates and infant healthcare utilisation. Maternal satisfaction may also be better with home visits compared to hospital check‐ups. Overall, the certainty of evidence was found to be low and findings were not consistent among studies and comparisons. Further well designed RCTs evaluating this complex intervention will be required to formulate the optimal package. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews – Intervention 21 July 2022
Local cooling for relieving pain from perineal trauma sustained during childbirth
There is limited very low‐certainty evidence that may support the use of cooling treatments, in the form or ice packs or cold gel pads, for the relief of perineal pain in the first two days following childbirth. It is likely that concurrent use of several treatments is required to adequately address this issue, including prescription and non‐prescription analgesia. Studies included in this review involved the use of cooling treatments for 10 to 20 minutes, and although no adverse effects were noted, these findings came from studies of relatively small numbers of women, or were not reported at all. The continued lack of high‐certainty evidence of the benefits of cooling treatments should be viewed with caution, and further well‐designed trials should be conducted. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews – Intervention 9 October 2020
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Articles
Breastfeeding
Factors that influence women's engagement with breastfeeding support: A qualitative evidence synthesis
Key messages:
Maternal and child nutrition 22 August 2022
Causes of perception of insufficient milk supply in Western Australian mothers
Key messages
Maternal and child nutrition 20 September 2020
The significance of early breastfeeding experiences on breastfeeding self-efficacy one week postpartum
Key messages
Maternal and child nutrition 5 March 2020
Vulnerable mothers' experiences breastfeeding with an enhanced community lactation support program
Key messages
Maternal and child nutrition 26 January 2020
Breastfeeding Aversion Response (BAR): A descriptive study
This study contributes new information about the experience of BAR, including when it commonly happens and who may be at greater risk. More support is needed for women who want to breastfeed while experiencing BAR. New public health policies which promote breastfeeding are needed to help women achieve satisfying breastfeeding experiences and meet their own breastfeeding goals. Journal of midwifery and women’s health 17 April 2023
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Midwifery practice
The role and scope of contemporary midwifery practice in Australia: A scoping review of the literature
There is a mismatch between the operational parameters for midwifery practice in Australia and the evidence-based models of continuity of midwifery carer that are associated with optimal outcomes for childbearing women and babies and the midwives themselves. Women and birth 9 January 2023
Skills and knowledge of midwives at free-standing birth centres and home birth: A meta-ethnography
The findings highlight that midwives integrated their sensorial experiences with their clinical knowledge of anatomy and physiology to care for women at home birth and in free-standing birth centres. The interactive relationship between midwives and women is at the core of creating an environment that supports physiological birth while integrating the lived experience of labouring women. Further research is needed to elicit how midwives develop these proficiencies. Women and birth 8 April 2023
Reducing disparities in postpartum care utilization: Development of a clinical risk assessment tool
An easy to implement clinical decision support tool can help identify FQHC patients at risk for postpartum nonattendance. Future interventions to improve adequacy of prenatal care can encourage early entry into prenatal care and sufficient prenatal visits. These efforts may improve postpartum care attendance and maternal health. Journal of midwifery and women’s health 24 December 2022
Experiences, beliefs, and values influencing midwives’ attitudes toward the use of childbirth interventions
Midwives with a wait and see attitude seem to have a more restricted approach toward interventions compared with midwives with a check and control attitude. Midwives need to be aware how their experiences, beliefs, and values shape their attitudes toward use of interventions. This awareness could be a first step toward the reduction of unwarranted interventions. Journal of midwifery and women’s health 2 August 2022
Pregnancy and weight monitoring: A feasibility study of weight charts and midwife support
Key messages
Maternal and child nutrition 28 March 2020
Home-based postnatal midwifery care facilitated a smooth succession into motherhood: A Swedish interview study
Mothers valued the well-structured home-based postnatal midwifery care. Important for mothers was to receive health checks, adequate information, and that midwives have a kind and individual approach to the families. Midwives play an important role for mothers in the early days after the birth of their baby. European journal of midwifery 8 April 2023
Use of pregnancy personalised follow-up in case of maternal social vulnerability to reduce prematurity and neonatal morbidity
This work suggests that personalized pregnancy follow-up (PPFU) improves pregnancy outcomes and emphasizes that the detection of social vulnerability during pregnancy is a major health issue. BMC pregnancy and childbirth 26 April 2023
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Research
Midwife led randomised controlled trials in Australia and New Zealand: A scoping review
Additional support for midwives to design and conduct trials and publish findings is required. Further support is needed to translate registration of trial protocols into peer reviewed publications. These findings will inform the Australasian Nursing and Midwifery Clinical Trials Network plans to promote quality midwife led trials. Women and birth 7 March 2023
UK midwives’ perceptions and experiences of using Facebook to provide perinatal support: Results of an exploratory online survey
Seeking support from Facebook groups during pregnancy is now widespread and social media has been widely used by the United Kingdom National Health Service (NHS) maternity services to communicate with service users during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, little is currently known about midwives’ attitudes towards, and experiences of social media in practice. Research is needed to understand barriers and solutions to meeting mothers’ expectations of online support and to improve services. This study explored midwife involvement in Facebook groups, exploring experiences and perceptions of its use to communicate with and support mothers. Plos digital health 17 April 2023
Factors that promote a positive childbearing experience: A qualitative study
Although women often sought out care that promoted physiologic birth, they emphasized that the way they were cared for was more important than fulfilling specific birth aspirations. Quality maternity care has the capacity to support a woman's confidence in her own abilities and promote a positive, and sometimes transformative, childbearing experience. Journal of midwifery and women’s health 9 September 2022
“Never let a good crisis go to waste”: Positives from disrupted maternity care in Australia during COVID-19
Highlights
Midwifery 17 April 2022
The use of continuous foetal monitoring technologies that enable mobility in labour for women with complex pregnancies: A survey of Australian and New Zealand hospitals
Highlights
Midwifery 19 November 2020
Comprehensiveness of infant formula and bottle feeding resources: A review of information from Australian healthcare organisations
Key messages
Maternal and child nutrition 15 December 2021
Linking student in nursing/student in midwifery employment to Australian professional standards: A cross-sectional study
The results of this study affirm the important integrative relationship between this work and student learning, whilst also demonstrating links to the achievement of professional standards, a requirement for all nursing and midwifery graduates. The absence of collaboration and connection between the university and clinical settings is of major concern given the long-standing attempts to reduce the intransigent ‘theory-practice gap’. It is axiomatic that the work undertaken by nursing and midwifery undergraduates in dedicated clinical employment roles in NQ contributes in significant ways to student learning and professional development. Collegian 19 April 2023
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This is just a sample of the journals the library subscribes to – you will need your library login
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