The Midwife-mother Relationship

Book excerpt: This book examines the relationships on which maternity care depends. Aspects of the midwife-mother relationship are examined, by midwives and mothers, using research findings and the distilled experience of respected clinicians. The relationships presented include those which have been established gradually over a long period as well as those which have been forged rapidly during labour. Problematic areas, such as the difficulties of communicating through an interpreter or sensitivities in relationships between mothers and childless midwives, are given appropriate consideration. This work includes examples of home and hospital births, independent and NHS practice, and perspectives from New Zealand as well as the United Kingdom. These many strands are brought together to identify what is fundamental to a good relationship between mother and midwife, how that relationship can prove powerful and how to prevent it from being undermined.