Starting Life as a Midwife, 1st ed. 2019
An International Review of Transition from Student to Practitioner

Coordinators: Gray Michelle, Kitson-Reynolds Ellen, Cummins Allison

Language: English

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204 p. · 15.5x23.5 cm · Paperback
This volume explores the unique challenges midwifery graduates face as they move into practice. It identifies the similarities and differences in midwifery education, regulation, and clinical practice faced by graduate midwives in all continents, examining the various support systems available for graduate midwives in many countries, and identifying the common strategies (formal and informal) and approaches that have proved to be effective in supporting midwifery graduates.
The book volume brings together the experiences of new midwives starting out in registered practice, to share the challenges and triumphs during their transition to confident practitioners.  
It identifies, explains and details both established and innovative new mechanisms in place to support new midwives in each country, and examines the effects the experiences of transitioning to practice may have on future professional practice, resilience and sustainability. Lack of support duringthe new-graduate transition to practice has been associated with early attrition from the midwifery profession.  Stress, disillusion, and horizontal violence have been identified as factors that influence midwifery attrition rates. Exploration of the various support mechanisms currently available in different countries may stimulate the sharing of best practices in providing new midwives with transition to practice programmes and generate further research.
Each chapter is harmonized to facilitate the comparison between countries, and the maternity services context is explained using each country?s specific legislation, regulation and registration of midwives. The preparation of midwifery students for qualified practice is outlined to explain how midwifery students are trained and socialized into the profession, mentored in their placements and then transitioned to registered midwife status. 
This book appeals to midwives, managers, educators, and newly graduated interested in international midwifery practice.

Introduction.- Chapter 1. Australia.- Chapter 2 . Belgium.- Chapter 3. Brazil.- Chapter 4. Canada.- Chapter 5.  Ethiopia.- Chapter 6. Germany.- Chapter 7. Hong Kong.- Chapter 8 . Iran/Teheran.- Chapter 9. Jamaica.- Chapter 10. New Zealand.- Chapter 11. The Netherlands.- Chapter 12. United Kingdom.

Michelle Gray has 25 years of midwifery practice experience working in a diverse range of maternity services in England and Australia; providing midwifery care to women in and out of hospital.

For the last ten years she has been a midwifery academic at the University of the Sunshine Coast where she has lead a Masters of Midwifery program 2007- 2015. More recently Michelle has coordinated the Bachelor of Midwifery program which commenced in February, 2017.

Michelle has a particular interest in midwifery regulation, registration, and standards of midwifery practice and education. This is evident in her professional engagement activities which include her professional engagement activities with the Australian College of Midwives (ACM) as Council representative for Queensland, Chair and committee member for ACM Queensland Branch; and reviewer for Elsevier articles and books. Finally, Michelle’s PhD thesis completed in September, 2016 investigated, ‘Midwives’ responses to the changed condition for registration renewal in Australia’. Her findings have been published in Australian and International peer-reviewed journals, and she has completed many conference presentations on her findings.

Michelle’s interest in midwifery regulation, education and practice led her to undertake a six month sabbatical in Ontario, Canada, June-December 2015, where she collaborated with international midwives on the examination of the support of new midwives in practice. This focus was the initiative that led to the creation of this collaborative international book dedicated to examining the experiences of new midwives as they transition into registered practice.


Dr. Ellen Kitson-Reynolds is a Midwifery Programmes Manager and principle lecturer in the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton, UK, and a Post-doctoral Clinical academic Midwife. She has led the three year Bachelor of Science Midwifery (Honours) and Master o

Provides common strategies and approaches proved to be effective in supporting new midwives’ transition to qualified status Identifies midwifery frameworks in many countries and develops the first international understanding of framework similarities and differences Examines the impact of national agendas on individuals Offers a humanistic view with personal stories collected from research studies