Posts By / Vanora Hundley
Hear about NIHR Wessex Applied Research Collaboration – 13th January 09:30 to 12:00
BU research, Research news Vanora Hundley
Applied Health and Care research is essential in our region if we are to improve the care and operation of our health and care systems.
Professor Alison Richardson, Director of the NIHR Wessex Applied Research Collaboration (ARC), will be talking about the newly formed ARC Wessex, which is working across the region with its partner organisations to bring the best research into practice.
ARC Wessex aims to address the immediate issues facing the health and social care system. The research programme focuses on four areas:
Ageing & Dementia.
Healthy Communities.
Workforce and Health Systems.
There are a number of initial projects underway – for further information see our website.
This event is open to everyone across Dorset, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and South Wiltshire – Our Wessex community. Please book your place: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/nihr-arc-wessex-skills-and-implementation-in-health-and-care-research-tickets-86901836733
Tags: BU research collaborative research research Wessex ARC
The Applied Research Collaboration for Wessex
BU research, Public engagement, Research news Vanora Hundley
Tuesday saw the launch of the Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) for Wessex. This exciting development brings together health and care organisations (including NHS Trusts, universities, Clinical Research Network, Academic Health Science Network, voluntary organisations) to respond to the needs of the people living in Wessex.
The day was opened by Professor Alison Richardson, Director of ARC Wessex who highlighted the challenges faced in Wessex and the four ARC themes designed to address them. There were short presentations of some of the innovative initial projects within the themes: Janis Baird – food product placement; Peter Griffiths – workforce; Stephen Lim – physical activity for older adults; Stephanie Health – Wessex Activation and Self-Management (WASP).
This was followed by a question and answer session with partners from across Wessex (Chair Sandy Ciccognani):
Dr. Chris Kipps – University of Southampton
Bill Gillespie – Academic Health Science Network
Prof. Vanora Hundley – Bournemouth University
Richard Samuel – Hampshire and Isle of Wight STP
Dr. Mark Tighe – Poole Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Future work will focus on developing new projects within the four ARC themes and colleagues may wish to contact the theme leads to establish collaborative networks. The four themes and leads are:
Aging and Dementia – Theme Lead Prof. Helen Roberts
Long Term Conditions – Theme Lead Prof. Maria Stokes
Healthy Communities – Themes Lead Prof. Julie Parkes
Health Systems & Workforce – Theme Lead Dr. Tom Monks
Website www.arc-wx.nihr.ac.uk .
Twitter https://twitter.com/arc_wessex
Email arcwessex@soton.ac.uk
Tags: AHRC ARC BU research
CMMPH student wins prestigious Iolanthe Midwifery Trust award
BU research, PG research, Research communication, Research news, student research Vanora Hundley
Congratulations to Dominique Mylod, clinical doctoral student in the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal and Perinatal Health , Faculty of Health and Social Sciences.
Dominique was awarded a Midwives Award from the Iolanthe Midwifery Trust for her research into early labour, which explores whether using a birth ball at home in early labour improves birth outcomes. She is supervised by Professor Vanora Hundley, Dr Sue Way, and Dr Carol Clark.
The picture shows Dominique receiving her award from Baroness Julia Cumberlege CBE, Patron of the Trust.
The International Early Labour Research Group
BU research, Featured academics, Global engagement Vanora Hundley
Researchers from across the globe met in Canada prior to the International Confederation of Midwives' 31st Triennial Congress to discuss their work on early labour.
r-l: Dr. Susan Way, UK; Prof. Vanora Hundley, UK; Dr. Mechthild Gross, Germany; Dr. Ellen Tilden, USA; Dr. Jessica Pehlke-Milde, Switzerland; Prof. Helen Spiby, UK; Prof Patricia Janssen, Canada
Other members (not present): Prof. Helen Cheyne, Dr. Mary-Ann Davey, Marie Nott, Viola Nyman
The International Early Labour Research Group has been meeting regularly since 2008 and produced a number of collaborative papers. Most recently a systematic review of labour definitions. This meeting was a chance to catch up on ongoing work, introduce new members and plan a future follow up survey on the latent phase of labour.
The Triennial Congress attracts midwives from all over the world. In 2017 there are over 4000 midwives, policy makers, donors, civil society and government representatives from 116 midwifery associations and representing 102 countries.
Dr Susan Way and Professor Vanora Hundley
Tags: BU research CMMPH collaborative research
Innovation in research and university spin outs
BU research, innovation, Research Training Vanora Hundley
Date: Tuesday 17th JanuaryTime: 13:00 – 16:00Location: EB708, Executive Business Centre, Lansdowne Campus, BH8 8EB
Register: https://enterpriseafternoon.eventbrite.co.uk
This session is an opportunity to discuss innovation in research and university spin outs. Visiting Professor Tom Kenny will provide some background to university spin outs and startups – what are they? And how do they happen?. Tom is also CEO of Spoonful of Sugar. There will be examples from BU academics and an opportunity to discuss knowledge exchange at BU. We will also hear from Andy Burroughs, Commercial Director at Wessex Academic Health Science Network (AHSN) about innovation in Dorset and whether we can get med tech to patients faster.
13:00 – 14:00: Healthcare businesses/ university spin outs and start-ups; what is it all about? – Tom Kenny, Visiting Professor and CEO of Spoonful of Sugar
14:00 – 15:00: Examples of spin outs and start-ups – Professors Alison McConnell & Tamas Hickish
15:00 – 15:30: Jayne Codling and Rachel Clarke – KTPs, Student Project Bank, Innovation funding – to include HEIF and Innovate UK, Business connections and networking
15:30 – 16:00: Can we get med tech to patients faster? – Andy Burroughs, Commercial Director, Wessex AHSN
16:00 – 16:30: Panel Q&A
Tags: BU research innovation spin out
BU's Clinical Academic Doctorates; an example of good practice in new official guidance
BU research, Impact, Research news Vanora Hundley
The Association of UK University Hospitals (AUKUH) has today released new guidance, Transforming healthcare through clinical academic roles in nursing, midwifery and allied health professions: A practical resource for healthcare provider organisations
The guide is aimed at NHS organisational leads with the responsibility for developing and embedding clinical academic roles for nursing, midwifery and allied health professions. Clinical academics serve as a crucial connection between the NHS and universities, working to train future generations of healthcare workers while engaging in research which can improve outcomes for patients and help increase efficiency.
The guide contains practical information, case studies and templates. One of the case studies highlighted is BU's innovative clinical academic doctorates. The pragmatic four-year clinical doctorate model enables midwives and nurses to remain in practice while conducting a piece of research to meet clinical priorities. The four-year clinical doctorate is a joint development involving academics at Bournemouth University and clinical colleagues at NHS trusts. The doctorate is structured to enable students to spend two days a week in clinical practice and three days conducting research. All research projects are jointly developed to meet an identified clinical need.
The model originated for midwives in Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, where we have eight fellows, and has now been adopted by the Isle of Wight NHS Trust, University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, Poole Hospitals NHS Trust and Dorset County Hospitals NHS Trust (Way et al., 2016). The model is also being extended to other disciplines, with our first nurse fellow at Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Trust.
Professor Debbie Carrick-Sen, Co-Chair of the group which produced the guidance, says:
'Creating this resource has required a significant amount of collaboration from colleagues across healthcare and we are truly grateful to them. The energy that has gone into it is a huge credit to the professions involved. Through this guidance they have the means to share their immense successes, learn from each other and ultimately work to the benefit of patient care.
'The guidance will be the starting point. We have established a network of organisational leads with the responsibility for its development and for using it to implement clinical academic roles across the UK. This gives us a fantastic opportunity to begin a nationwide dialogue and to transform health and social care in the UK.'
Way S, van Teijlingen E, HundleyV, Westwood G, Walton G, Wiggins D, Colbourne D, Richardson C, Wixted D, Mylod D (2016) Dr Know. Midwives, 19, 66-67.
Tags: AUKUH CMMPH research
Early labour: is it a problem in Texas?
BU research, Global engagement, Research news Vanora Hundley
Professor Vanora Hundley was recently invited to give a lecture to staff and students at UTHealth School of Nursing in Houston, Texas School of Nursing. The topic of her presentation was 'Early labour – should we be telling women to stay at home?'
Early labour often presents a challenge for women and midwives in the UK. There is evidence that women admitted to hospital in the latent phase of labour are more likely to get unnecessary interventions, however women seek hospital admission for reassurance and support. The problem is further complicated by a lack of a clear definition of the latent phase as a recent systematic review, conducted with colleagues from the International Early Labour Research Group, shows (Hanley et al., 2016).
Nurses at UTHealth recognised the challenges of supporting women in early labour, but due to insurance policy requirements women are often not admitted to a labour and birthing room until they are 4 cm dilated or in the active labour phase. Instead women remain in a triage or holding area until they are 4 cm dilated, or may be sent home. The challenge in Texas is how to support women who are waiting for labour to progress.
CMMPH is conducting a number of studies to identify how best to support women in early labour and opportunities for collaboration with staff at UT Health were explored.
Reference: Hanley GE, Munro S, Greyson D, Gross MM, Hundley V, Spiby H and Janssen PA (2016) Diagnosing onset of labor: A systematic review of definitions in the research literature. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 16: 71
Photo shows Dr Rebecca Helmreich (UTH) & Prof Vanora Hundley (BU)
Tags: BU research CMMPH
Professor Elizabeth Rosser elected to the Board of Directors of Sigma Theta Tau International
Featured academics, Global engagement, international Vanora Hundley
Congratulations to Professor Elizabeth Rosser, who has been elected to the Board of Directors of the prestigious nursing society Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI). Elizabeth is only one of two members on the STTI Board from outside of the USA. The Board is small with only 10 members in total.
Founded in 1922 STTI recognises the value of leadership, scholarship and excellence in nursing practice. In 1936, STTI became the first U.S. organization to fund nursing research. Today, STTI supports these values through its numerous professional development products and services that focus on the core areas of education, leadership, career development, evidence-based nursing, research, and scholarship.
Elizabeth was elected to the STTI Board at the 43rd Biennium of Sigma Theta Tau International in Las Vegas where she was representing the Phi Mu Chapter (England) as President. It is fitting recognition for Elizabeth's work in establishing and leading the All England Chapter.
Tags: nursing
Integrating Mental Health into Maternal Health Programs
On Thursday I took the opportunity to attend a seminar at the Wilson Centre run by the Maternal Health initiative (MHI). The MHI seminar series promotes dialogue and understanding among practitioners, scholars, community leaders, and policymakers with the aim of facilitating creative interventions that can be integrated into policies and programs worldwide. This month's topic focused on the neglected issue of Perinatal Common Mental Health Disorders (PCMDs) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Mental health concerns have remained largely absent in large-scale global maternal health programs, and the first speaker Prof Jane Fisher (Jean Hailes Professor of Women's Health and Director Jean Hailes Research Unit School of Public Health & Preventive Medicine, Monash University) provided the background to the problem. Jane highlighted the damage done by work in the 1980s that suggested that women in LMICs were protected from perinatal mental disorders because of the traditional care practices after birth. The result of this misinformation has been a dearth of research in LMICs and a failure to recognise the impact that PCMDs may have on both maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. Jane presented data on the prevalence and determinants of mental health disorders in LMICs that indicated that they are a very real issue for women in LMICs. She called for universal programmes for all pregnant women and for maternal mental health to be included as an indicator within the proposed Sustainable Development Goals.
Prof Ricardo Araya (Professor Global Mental Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) presented data to support the global burden posed by mental health disorders. He highlighted that a lack of specialist human resources and a lack of funding were the biggest barriers to addressing the issue. Presenting his extensive work in this area, he highlighted how task shifting has been shown to be an effective mechanism of providing support for women. However, he warned of the burden that this was placing on already over-worked frontline health workers and called for the maternal health community to provide greater attention and resources to address this neglected area of maternal health.
The discussion focused on the importance of raising the profile of mental health within the global maternal health community and on how health care providers can be supported to deliver interventions in LMICs. In the Centre for Midwifery Maternal & Perinatal Health we recognise the need for work in both these areas – researchers at CMMPH are currently working on mental health training for maternal care providers in Nepal. For further information contact Edwin van Teijlingen.
You can download the MHI presentations and watch the video here: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/integrating-mental-health-maternal-health-programs
Tags: CMMPH research
WHO statement on eliminating disrespect & abuse in childbirth
BU research Vanora Hundley
The World Health Organization (WHO) statement issued this week challenges governments, clinicians and researchers to respond to the call for the prevention and elimination of disrespect and abuse during childbirth.1 This includes:
Greater support from governments and development partners for research and action
Programmes to improve the quality of maternal health care, with a strong focus on respectful care
Emphasizing the rights of women to dignified, respectful healthcare through pregnancy and childbirth
Generating data related to respectful and disrespectful care practices, systems of accountability and meaningful professional support
Involving all stakeholders, including women, in efforts to improve quality of care and eliminate disrespectful and abuse practices
We, at the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH), strongly support the WHO's statement that: "Every woman has the right to the highest attainable standard of health, including the right to dignified, respectful care during pregnancy and childbirth."
Disrespect and abuse are significant barriers to facility birth in many low and middle income countries; an area that CMMPH has been exploring. Lesley Milne and colleagues have been working on this area in Nepal2, while PhD student Rachel Arnold has been working in Afghanistan3. In addition, CMMPH researchers are looking at dignity within the UK. Dr Jenny Hall is working with the charity Birthrights to explore dignity in maternity care for women with disabilities.
More widely, lack of compassion in health care has triggered HSC researchers to study the issue of the de-humanisation of care. Consequently, the School of Health and Social Care has a long-standing reputation in the field of humanising care research. Scholars such as Professor Les Todres, Professor Kate Galvin (now at the University of Hull), Dr. Caroline Ellis-Hill and Dr. Ann Hemingway to name but a few, are at the forefront of this field globally.
CMMPH applauds the WHO stand on this issue and hopes that it helps to maintain the global momentum to eliminate disrespectful care.
Prof Edwin van Teijlingen and Prof Vanora Hundley
http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/topics/maternal_perinatal/statement-childbirth/en/
Milne L, van Teijlingen E, Hundley V, Simkhada P. Barriers within hospital (either real or perceived) to women seeking facility based birth in Nepal. Final report to Wellbeing of Women. 2014
Arnold R, van Teijlingen E, Ryan K, Holloway I. Understanding Afghan health care providers; a qualitative study of the culture of care in a Kabul maternity hospital. BJOG (submitted).
Tags: BU research CMMPH Health
WAN Mentoring Event – July 10th
Women's Academic Network Vanora Hundley
Facilitated by: Dr Colleen Harding, Head of Organisational and Staff Development, Tamsyn Dent, Post-Graduate Researcher, Media School
This session is aimed at: all staff, male and female, and will be of particular interest to those who are interested in academic mentoring for women, and who are willing to be a mentor; would like to work with a mentor; or who support staff who would like to engage in mentoring.
When: July 10th 13:00 – 16:30
Where: The Octagon
The purpose of the event is to provide an opportunity for the Women's Academic Network to:
Discuss the benefits of engaging in mentoring
Find out more about how mentoring currently works at BU
Consider some of the options available to set up an academic mentoring network that specifically supports the needs of female academics at BU
To identify the steps that we need to take in order to set up an effective mentoring network.
By the end of the event participants will have:
Discussed some models of coaching and mentoring, including the findings from a doctoral study on the transitional space provided by coaching and mentoring for emerging academics
Discussed some of the research studies on mentoring relevant to women in academia
Identified the critical steps necessary to set up a mentoring network that specifically supports the needs of female academics at BU
Register through staff development
Tags: mentoring WAN
International Early Labour Research Group – 2014 meeting
BU research, EU, Featured academics, Research news Vanora Hundley
Photo (L to R): Mechthild Gross (Germany), Marie Nott (UK), Tine Eri (Norway), Helen Spiby (UK)., Viola Nyman (Sweden), Vanora Hundley (UK), Patti Janssen (Canada), Mary-Ann Davey (Australia).
Researchers from across the globe met in Prague recently to discuss early labour research and to plan an international collaborative study. The group has been meeting regularly since 2008 and produced a number of collaborative papers, including a special issue of Midwifery dedicated to early labour and guest edited by two of the team. The meeting was timely given the recent ACOG guideline, related to re-framing established labour at 6cm cervical dilatation.
Presentations included:
Meta-synthesis on women's experiences of early labour – Tine Eri (Vestfold University College, Norway)
Clinical midwives and early labour – Viola Nyman (University of Gotherberg, Sweden)
Role of media and women's behaviours in early labour – Vanora Hundley (Bournemouth University, UK) also on behalf of Helen Cheyne (University of Stirling, UK)
Early labour triage service on the experiences of women, partners and midwives – Marie Nott (University of Southampton, UK)
Scoping Review of definitions of early labour onset and validation of the prediction tool – Patti Janssen (University of British Colombia, Canada)
Women's perceptions of pre-hospital labour duration – Patti Janssen (University of British Colombia, Canada)
Opportunities for future collaboration were discussed and projects were identified that could involve a number of settings. The potential for a fit with European Union funding will be explored. Virtual collaboration will continue with the next face to face meeting to be held at Grange-over-Sands, immediately prior to the Normal Birth Conference 2015.
Fear in childbirth: Are the media responsible?
BU research, Featured academics, Festival of Learning Vanora Hundley
Social perceptions and beliefs about childbirth can increase women's requests for interventions, such as caesarean section, with long-term health implications for mothers and babies. Members of the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health and the Journalism and Communication academic group are hosting a joint BU Festival of Learning event to explore the role of the mass media in shaping such beliefs and identify whether media portrayals are responsible for rising rates of intervention. The event will be a debate on the impact of the mass media on women's view of childbirth.
The motion is: The media is responsible for creating fear in childbirth.
The audience will be given the opportunity to vote on the motion before and after the debate. Two opposing teams will debate the motion prior to wider discussion with the audience.
Date: Wednesday, June 11, 2014 at 10:00 AM (BST)
Further information from: Vanora Hundley, Edwin van Teijlingen, and Ann Luce
To book your free place: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/fear-in-childbirth-is-the-media-responsible-tickets-10988513941
Tags: CMMPH HSC media public engagement
HSC student Daisy Wiggins wins Santander award
BU research, PG research, Research news Vanora Hundley
Congratulations to Daisy Wiggins from the School of Health & Social Care for winning a Santander Mobility Award of £1,000. This award will allow Daisy to develop networks to examine decision making in childbirth.
Daisy's PhD is looking at My Birthplace: a computerized decision making tool to support women, their partners and midwives to make a decision about place of birth. Her match-funded PhD studentship with Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust (PHT) is an innovative four year model that enables Daisy to undertake a PhD while remaining connected with clinical practice. She currently spends two days per week working as a midwife in clinical practice and three days per week working on her PhD research.
The Santander Mobility Award will fund a trip to the Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professions Research Unit at the University of Stirling in Scotland. In addition, Daisy will visit Kings College London to network with colleagues at the Women's Health Unit.
Daisy's research is supervised by Prof. Vanora Hundley (BU), Dr Carol Bond (BU) and Gill Walton (Head of Midwifery at PHT).
Centre for Midwifery, Maternal and Perinatal Health: http://research.bournemouth.ac.uk/centre/centre-for-midwifery-maternal-and-perinatal-health/
CMMPH PhD students steal the show at the GLOW maternal health conference
PG research, Research news Vanora Hundley
The second Global Women's Health Conference, held in Birmingham on November 1st, highlighted the work that still needs to be done to reduce maternal mortality. Prof Wendy Graham from the University of Aberdeen opened the conference outlining the progress to date but reminding us that there was much still to do. Her hard hitting presentation showed the unacceptable conditions of birthing rooms in many countries. She urged the audience to remember that "we do not want universal health care of poor quality."
Rachel Arnold
This was followed by a short film produced by BU Visiting Professor Gwyneth Lewis, which tells the story of Mrs X and why she died in childbirth.
A number of presenters highlighted hospital conditions and disrespectful staff as a disincentive for women in seeking facility birth. However, Rachel Arnold, PhD student in CMMPH, reminded the audience that the carers were women too. She noted that it is all too easy to blame health care professionals, forgetting the challenging conditions that they have to work in. In her excellent and moving presentation Rachel presented quotes from midwives and doctors in Afghanistan that brought a number of audience members to tears.
BU Prof Vanora Hundley presented work from Pakistan evaluating a decision tool to support policy makers and programme managers who are considering the potential role of clean birth kits in their strategy for care at birth.
Sheetal Sharma
While PhD student Sheetal Sharma's poster presentation Getting women to care in Nepal: A Difference in Difference analysis of a health promotion intervention stole the day winning best poster prize. Sheetal has a unique international supervisory team led by BU and her PhD is supported by Bournemouth University with a studentship and a Santander grant.
The event was also an opportunity to publicise next year's international conference on Midwifery and the post-MDG agenda, which will be held at Bournemouth University.
Tags: CMMPH CMMPH HSC
Twenty years after the publication of Changing Childbirth, where are we now?
BU research, Featured academics, Research news Vanora Hundley
Twenty years after the publication of Changing Childbirth, an eminent panel of clinicians, politicians and consumer representatives assembled to review the legacy of this key maternity report. The session, funded by the Wellcome Trust, was held at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in London – an appropriate place given the balance of power at the time of the report. BU Professors Vanora Hundley and Edwin van Teijlingen were invited to attend as part of the selected audience at the session.
The session started with the panel reminding the audience that maternity services prior to the publication of Changing Childbirth in the early 1990s were anything but women focused. Several speakers noted that this report was the first to put women at the centre of maternity care, and many of the recommendations regarding patient-centred care across the NHS followed on from it. As the president of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) Lesley Page commented: "It was common sense, but hugely radical."
Changing Childbirth was the government's response to Sir Nicholas Winterton's ground-breaking review of the maternity services (Health Select Committee report 1992). The review was unique in seeking views from women – as Nicholas Winterton noted, his Parliamentary committee also made history by letting women who came to give evidence breastfeed during the hearing.
Baroness Julia Cumberlege reflected on how she had been determined that the Health Select Committee report would not simply be another filed document but would have an impact. Twenty years on has the report had an impact?
The discussions covered a wide-ranging number of maternity care issues at the time of Changing Childbirth's conception, many of which are still issues today in the UK. We'd like to highlight two of these issues where BU has made an academic contribution. First, the observation that we need to be cautious in making assumptions about choices that women perceive they have in childbirth. Profs van Teijlingen and Hundley's research has demonstrated that women often cannot envisage or value potential choices if these options don't exist in their current environment.1,2
The second BU contribution to the debate is around the closure of small maternity units. One of the panel members compared the centralisation of maternity services to that of banks and supermarkets. A comparative study was published in 2010 by Prof. van Teijlingen and BU Visiting Fellow Dr. Emma Pitchforth under the title 'Rural maternity care: Can we learn from Wal-Mart?'.
Overall the panel was positive about the legacy of Changing Childbirth – that is, a more humanised maternity services. However, all present expressed disappointment at the failure of the NHS to introduce continuity of carer, something that women who gave evidence stated they valued highly. As Nicholas Winterton said: "We have made progress but we should be making further progress – It is unfinished business."
Vanora Hundley is Professor of Midwifery
Edwin van Teijlingen is Professor of Reproductive Health Research
Hundley V, Ryan M and Graham W (2001) Assessing women's preferences for intrapartum care. Birth 28 (4): 254-263.
van Teijlingen E, Hundley V, Rennie AM, Graham W, Fitzmaurice A. (2003) Maternity satisfaction studies and their limitations: "What is, must still be best", Birth 30: 75-82.
van Teijlingen ER and Pitchforth E. (2010) Rural maternity care: Can we learn from Wal-Mart? Health & Place 16: 359-364.
Tags: BU research CMMPH CMMPH HSC
BU hosts the Iolanthe Midwifery Trust awards
BU research, PG research, Public engagement Vanora Hundley
Tricia Anderson
On Thursday 12th September the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal and Perinatal Health (CMMPH) was host to the Iolanthe Midwifery Trust awards in the Executive Business Centre. Founded in 1983, the Trust supports midwives and student midwives to undertake further education and to carry out projects designed to improve the care of mothers and babies.
Professor Gail Thomas, Dean of HSC, opened the evening and welcomed guests to Bournemouth University (BU). She noted that the event was particularly poignant for midwives in CMMPH, as it marked the final year of the Tricia Anderson award made in the memory of Tricia Anderson, who was a midwife and lecturer at the university.
Alison Taylor
The evening featured presentations by Mary Stewart, who reflected on Tricia's life and legacy, and updates from the five Tricia Anderson award winners who told the audience about the impact that their awards had made. Presenters included BU's Alison Taylor, who received the first Tricia Anderson award in 2008. She presented a brief film showing how the award was helping to improve education and practice about breastfeeding.
Professor Lesley Page with award winner Grace Stanford
2013 award winners received their awards and certificates from Professor Lesley Page, President of the Royal College of Midwives. Winners came from the length and breadth of the UK. Among the twelve student and seven midwife award winners was BU student midwife Sean Hill who received funding for his elective placement at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden.
Trustee Professor Billie Hunter and Professor Lesley Page announced a new award for 2014, the Jean Davis Award, which will be available for midwives working to address the impact of social inequalities on the well-being of pregnant women, new mothers and their babies.
Vanora Hundley, Professor of Midwifery at BU and Trustee, closed the event thanking all the presenters and award winners for a fascinating and inspiring evening.
Tags: CMMPH
The portrayal of childbirth in the mass media
BU research, Fusion Vanora Hundley
Marilyn Cash from HSC's Centre for Midwifery, Maternal and Perinatal Health recently delivered a paper on the Portrayal of Childbirth in the Mass Media, at the Reimagining Birth International Research Symposium held at the Humanities Institute University College Dublin, Ireland. The research symposium brought together academics, medics and artists from around the world to explore how childbirth has been portrayed/represented/imagined in the worlds of art and medicine.
The symposium provided an opportunity for contemporary critical debates into the visual culture of childbirth. This was a unique opportunity for researchers and practitioners to explore/discuss the visual and sensorial culture of birth, and to contribute to our reimagining of this fundamental personal life experience for mother and child. Central to the vision of the symposium is the ambition to build connections between interested parties, providing a forum for transcending current knowledge silos and contributing to innovative change in this important personal/cultural domain of human experience.
The paper is part of an ongoing collaboration between academics in the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal and Perinatal Health and the Media School and the University of Stirling, exploring the medicalisation of childbirth. As a direct result of the symposium academics from the group have been invited to present at the Perinatal Care Online Conference to be held in November 2013. For further information please contact a member of the Media and Childbirth research team (which includes: Prof Vanora Hundley: vhundley@bournemouth.ac.uk, Prof Edwin van Teijlingen: evteijlingen@bournemouth.ac.uk, Dr Ann Luce: aluce@bournemouth.ac.uk, Dr Marilyn Cash: mcash@bournemouth.ac.uk , Prof Helen Cheyne: h.l.cheyne@stir.ac.uk, Dr Catherine Angell: cangell@bournemouth.ac.uk .