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Perspectives on Midwifery and Parenthood
Book chapter

Perspectives on Midwifery and Parenthood

Julie Jomeen
Perspectives on Midwifery and Parenthood, pp.211-218
Springer International Publishing
01/01/2023
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17285-4_16

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Abstract

Mental health Midwives Mother-father-child interactions Partners’ relationships Social discourse Transition to parenthood
This book has presented a series of chapters exploring diverse contemporary issues and contexts in the transition to parenthood (TtoP). TtoP is about becoming a mother, a father and a parent and the formation of a family and as such is a momentous life journey event. Transitions, such as the TtoP, influence future well-being of parents themselves, children and families. TtoP consists of many contexts and variables, which inherently interlink and overlap. This concluding chapter attempts to draw the chapters together to make those common threads and overlap explicit. The book begins exploring antenatal circumstances and their relationship to TtoP. It is clear that the whole perinatal experience is influenced substantively by a milieu of circumstances and situations, as discussed within several of the chapters. Further, the support structure is profiled and how that itself is supported. For example, fathers support mothers but how do we as midwives and maternity practitioners support fathers? How do we acknowledge and facilitate parents’ spiritual beliefs and needs? The role that key societal discourses play infuses the whole book. How those discourses influence both parents’ experiences and shape and create the context in which they transition to parenthood, but also how they engage with care, is another valuable aspect that is explored. The criticality and value of the role of the midwife are unequivocal as they and the wider team providing maternity care strive to enhance the health and well-being of mothers, fathers and families in the TtoP. Care must recognise the diverse situations and contexts that exist during the TtoP and attend to all the domains that characterise the whole spectrum, that is, the perinatal period. Interconnectivity between services needs effective service design to facilitate care pathways that promote seamless care and good communication. This book has offered perspectives across a range of differing contexts, presenting new knowledge and offering solutions, to support midwives and other maternity professionals to enhance the health and well-being of mothers, fathers and families in the TtoP.

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