Midwifery and Women’s Health

Biography

Biography: Melody D Quirat

Abstract

The midwife is recognized as a responsible and accountable professional who works in partnership with women to give the necessary support, care and advice during pregnancy, labour and the postpartum period, to conduct births on the midwife’s own responsibility and to provide care for the newborn and the infant. This care includes preventive measures, the promotion of normal birth, the detection of complications in mother and child, the accessing of medical care or other appropriate assistance and the carrying out of emergency measures. The midwife has an important task in health counseling and education, not only for the woman, but also within the family and the community. This work should involve (antenatal education) and preparation for parenthood and may extend to women’s health, sexual or reproductive health and care for children in the early years of life. A midwife may practice in any setting including the home, community, hospitals, clinics or health units.Midwives work close to women and their newborn infants.

Midwifery services are available and easily accessible to families in the communities where they live. For instance at primary level family planning, as well as postpartum and pre natal care, breastfeeding support, newborn hearing test, and newborn screening can be provided by midwives. Midwives identify pregnancy and childbirth complications early, provide first line management and prompt transfer for hospital for back-up care when needed, reducing delays to the next level of care and allowing for greater efficiency along the continuum.

Midwifery services are designed to fulfill the following guiding principles:

A.   Promote the right of all women to professional midwifery care (including emergency obstetric care) that is available, accessible and acceptable, and of good quality.

B.  Ensure the continuum of care from adolescence through to care of the newborn and into the early weeks of life.

C.   Ensure the continuum of care from home to tertiary hospital

D.   Be sensitive to gender and culture and deliver respectful care to all women, their partners and families

E.   Be able to provide the set of evidence-based cost-effective and lifesaving interventions for family planning, maternal and newborn health.

Midwifery services caring for women and child’s health has been defined as care where the midwife is the lead professional in the planning, and delivery of care given to a woman from initial booking to the postnatal period.