19.10 Where next for Midwifery? Ockenden & Amos round up

Series 19 - Episode 9: Where next for Midwifery? Ockenden & Amos round up

Maternity & Midwifery are the subject two significant reports which have huge implications for the choices for women and the shape of the profession.

Students can’t get jobs, experienced midwives are retiring and leaving, education is trapped in university financial crisis and now the basic roles and education of the profession are being questioned, with calls to end direct entry to graduate courses.

In less than a decade the objective of Better Births and Continuity of Care seem further away than ever, the statistics for maternal deaths are getting worse, not better, and the objective of halving stillbirths remains far away. We now have revelations of huge failing in maternity services, disrespect and insensitive treatment of women in labour, unprofessional behaviour among colleagues and accusations of bullying of women and junior staff.

Is this a complete picture of what is happening and will the proposed solutions make the difference expected?

Hosted by:

Neil Stewart

Contributions from:

Neil Stewart, Editorial Director, MATFLIX/ Maternity & Midwifery Forum

Nicky Clark, Freelance Midwifery Educationalist; former LME, University of Hull