| CODE | MID2007 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | Midwifery in the Community | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||||||
| EQF/MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 2 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Midwifery | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This unit introduces students to the conceptual, philosophical, and practical foundations of midwifery within community settings. The unit focuses on woman-centred care, humanisation of childbirth, continuity of care, and the midwife’s role as lead professional and coordinator. Students will explore how midwifery models of care—such as caseload, team midwifery, midwife-led units, DOMINO schemes, and community postnatal services—are structured, delivered, and evaluated internationally. Central themes include the transition from medicalised, hospital-driven maternity care towards evidence-based, holistic, and equitable midwifery-led approaches. Students will analyse continuity of care models, their benefits, challenges, and the implications for women, families, and midwives. Emphasis is placed on community postnatal care, including NICE guidance on maternal physical recovery, mental health screening, infant feeding, safeguarding, and parent–infant bonding. Throughout the unit, students will critically examine how midwifery services can adapt to meet the needs of diverse populations and improve outcomes while recognising organisational constraints, risk-averse systems, and the importance of professional resilience. The unit prepares students to provide safe, personalised, and compassionate care within community contexts. Study-unit Aims: This study unit aims to: 1. Explore the philosophy, principles, and practices that underpin community-based midwifery and woman-centred care; 2. Examine the organisation, delivery, and outcomes of diverse midwifery models of care across local and international contexts; 3. Develop students’ understanding of the midwife’s role as lead professional and coordinator of care in the community; 4. Strengthen students’ ability to apply evidence-based practice in antenatal, intrapartum, and postnatal community care; 5. Foster critical and reflective thinking concerning how maternity services can be designed to improve outcomes, equity, and women’s experiences. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: • Define midwifery models of care as conceptualised by WHO, ICM, and leading research; • Distinguish between obstetric-led, shared-care, family doctor–led, and midwife-led care models; • Describe the core philosophy of midwifery, including woman-centred, holistic, and humanising care; • Explain the organisation and principles of key models such as caseload midwifery, team midwifery, DOMINO, and birth centres; • Discuss the evidence for continuity of care and its impact on maternal and newborn outcomes; • Identify and describe elements of community midwifery care including assessment, health promotion, referral, and NICE-guided postnatal care; • Recognise system-level factors influencing midwifery practice, equity, and women’s experiences. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: • Critically evaluate midwifery models of care and assess their strengths and limitations; • Apply principles of woman-centred, compassionate, and culturally sensitive care; • Support informed decision-making through communication, education, and shared planning; • Conduct community-based assessments including antenatal, postnatal, mental health, and infant feeding assessments according to NICE guidance; • Collaborate effectively within multidisciplinary and inter-agency teams; • Reflect on their professional role and how models of care can be adapted to improve practice within their local context. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Josephine Attard |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2026/7. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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