Keeping your newborn baby safe
Keeping your newborn baby safe is a concern for all new parent. Here are some thoughts and ideas to get you started.| Walking With You
Keeping your newborn baby safe is a concern for all new parent. Here are some thoughts and ideas to get you started.| Walking With You
The term high risk pregnancy often causes concern to clients. They may feel well ad healthy, and have always been. Sometimes at their first appointment in pregnancy they find that they are classified as having a “high risk” pregnancy. Sometimes some new information arises during the pregnancy and you are told that you have become high risk. Why? What does… The post High risk pregnancy appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
Midwifery in the UK is very different to midwifery in Malawi, and to midwifery in many other countries. For those who have grown up in the UK with the NHS, there is a general acceptance that healthcare is freely available, and an acceptance that the system is under a great deal of pressure and there are often significant delays. For… The post Midwifery in the UK appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
One of the issues I thought a great deal about during my time in Malawi is the issue of interventions in pregnancy and birth. Are interventions a bad thing? Are they good? As with many things in life, it all depends…. In the UK it has become widely accepted (and much debated) that hospital-based practice around birth tends to include… The post Are interventions a bad thing? appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
So here I am, back in the UK as the new year starts. I have returned immediately to my work as an independent midwife in Sussex, and I’ve been reflecting on volunteering as a midwife in Malawi. What have I learned, what surprised me, and what this might mean for me in the future? I really didn’t know what to… The post Midwife in Malawi (part 13) – reflecting on volunteering appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
Throughout human history, throughout the world, the majority of babies have been born at home. In the last few decades however, in many countries, hospital birth has been promoted as being “best”. So is hospital birth best? This is a question I discuss frequently in the UK, and it has been an increasing concern for me in Malawi. Since 2012… The post Midwife in Malawi (part 12) – Is hospital birth best? appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
The population in Malawi has grown at an astonishing rate in the last 10 years. There is a very important message that needs to be shared here – of family spacing and the use of contraception. The speed that the population is increasing is very problematic for such a poor country, not simply in terms of cash and service provision,… The post Midwife in Malawi (part 11) – family spacing appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
Holding and carrying your baby all day is just what every woman does here. It isn’t a choice, it’s a necessity, but one which seems to work very well for both the woman and the baby. In the UK we have many options including prams and buggies, car seats, and a wide array of slings and baby carriers. In Malawi,… The post Midwife in Malawi (part 10) – holding and carrying your baby appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
The recurring theme of my week has been food. Food poverty, food production and efficient cooking facilities. In the industrialised world we are so used to having wide choices of food (and plenty of it). The easy availability of food, much of it ultra processed, means that the industrialised world is facing widespread health issues relating to obesity and sub-optimal… The post Midwife in Malawi – food appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
In my days at the hospital I have been focusing on improving services in the special care nursery. Finding alternative ways of feeding babies who cannot breastfeed is vital. With minimal equipment and staff with no specialist skills in caring for premature and sick babies, feeding and kangaroo care are the main things we can do. I described this in… The post Midwife in Malawi (part 8) – feeding babies appeared first on Walking With You.| Walking With You
