Elsevier

Midwifery

Volume 34, March 2016, Pages 253-260
Midwifery

A wall of information? Exploring the public health component of maternity care in England

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2015.10.013Get rights and content
Under a Creative Commons license
open access

Highlights

  • The public health agenda within maternity care in England is wide ranging and complex.

  • Midwives and maternity support workers frequently engage in the delivery of public health messages.

  • In England expectations often exceed provided resources for public health activities.

  • Online discussion groups utilising social media were found to be an efficient and effective method of data collection.

Abstract

Background

midwives have traditionally had an important role in providing public health messages to women. The range and diversity of the public health remit within maternity services has expanded rapidly over the past decade and maternity support workers as well as midwives are now engaged in public health work in many areas. Given these changes a review of current practice was indicated.

Objective

to identify student midwives׳, midwives׳ and midwifery support workers׳ current knowledge of and involvement in the public health agenda in England.

Design

descriptive qualitative study using online discussion forums.

Setting

England, United Kingdom

Participants

undergraduate student midwives, midwives and maternity support workers employed by the National Health Service in England and University employed Leads for Midwifery Education.

Findings

key themes identified were: the scope of the midwives׳ public health role, training and support for public health role, barriers and facilitators, specific client groups, specialist referral services. Student midwives, midwives and maternity support workers view engagement with, and delivery of, public health initiatives as an integral component of their roles, but are on occasions frustrated by constraints of time, training and public engagement.

Key conclusions

the National Health Service in England aims to engage pregnant women and new mothers in a diverse range of population based and individualised, public health initiatives. Currently, there are high levels of involvement in the public health agenda from the maternity workforce across a wide range of activities. However, midwives and maternity support workers are restricted by barriers of time, training and resources. These barriers will need addressing for optimal maternity care engagement in public health to be realised.

Implications for practice

policy makers, commissioners and National Health Service providers need to provide clear guidance on the expectations of the public health remit of midwives and maternity support workers and ensure that such expectations are appropriately resourced to provide effective delivery.

Keywords

Public health
Health education
Midwifery
Online focus groups

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