International Midwifery articles from December 2006

International Midwifery archives from December 2006

ICM--keeping our members in touch: ICM Secretary General Kathy Herschderfer rounds up 2006 and looks forward to 2007.(International Confederation of Midwives)
December 1, 2006... Among the strategic directions set by its Council for ICM last year was a focus on strengthening midwifery associations, selected partnership and representation for midwives in the global arena. The work carried out at ICM head office this year...

New Director-General of WHO greeted by ICM.(News from ICM and partners)(International Confederation of Midwives)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Dr Margaret Chan of China will be the next Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO). During her acceptance speech, Dr Chan said that, although WHO is a health organisation for the whole world, "we must focus our attention on the...

Call for new members for ICM research network.(News from ICM and partners)(International Confederation of Midwives)
December 1, 2006... The ICM's Research Standing Committee is looking to expand its network of research advisors/peer reviewers. This multi-disciplinary network serves the dual function of facilitating research collaboration among members as well as providing...

Young Midwifery Leader elected to Board of EMA.(News from ICM and partners)
December 1, 2006... ICM was delighted to hear the news that Susanne Raetz, one of the mentees in the ICM's Young Midwifery Leaders programme, has been elected to the Board of the European Midwives' Association. Having been nominated, Susanne wrote: 'I...

NZ College of Midwives.(News from ICM and partners)(Correction notice)
December 1, 2006... We apologise that the email address for the New Zealand College of Midwives was set incorrectly in the September issue of IM: it should be nzcom@nzcom.org.nz.

Information exchange among ICM board members--challenges and opportunities: at the June 2006 Board meeting in The Hague, members were asked to report three current midwifery issues from their region and to tell one 'success story'.(International Confederation of Midwives)
December 1, 2006... Andrea Stiefel (for Central Europe): * There is a drive to raise awareness among both the public and government of unnecessary medical interventions * There is a current need to protect distinct midwifery education for midwives'...

Averting mortality from PPH in Africa: moving from research to practice/la prevention de la mortalite due a l'HPP en Afrique: avancee de la recherche a la pratique.(postpartum haemorrhage)
December 1, 2006... The conference on preventing postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) was held 4-7 April 2006 in Entebbe, Uganda. It was organised by ACCESS/JHPIEGO (international organisation working to combat maternal and neonatal mortality, including that at community...

ICM welcomes two recently joined members in the Americas region: Haiti and Suriname: Marie Nadege Aladin writes about the Association des Infirmieres Sages-Femmes de Haiti and Board member Debbie Lewis reports on a visit to Suriname.
December 1, 2006... L'AISFH : The First Association of Nurse-Midwives in Haiti The problems related to maternal and infant-juvenile health warrant very special attention in Haiti and require synergistic energies and actions to reduce the rate of maternal and...

Reinvigorated activity among midwives in Liberia after 14 years of civil war: P Annie Clark of the American College of Nurse Midwives visited Liberia in summer 2006 on behalf of ICM and found midwives working hard for their association.
December 1, 2006... Originally set up as a nation for people freed from slavery, Liberia has suffered from internal unrest and civil war for much of the past two decades. However, since the institution of democratic elections in 2005 and the inauguration of the...

News from Ghana midwives.(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... The Ghana Registered Midwives' Association (GRMA) has sent a report of activity to ICM, which includes their celebration of the International Day of the Midwife. This was held later than usual, owing to the sad occasion on May 5 of the funeral...

Award goes to Ethiopian midwife.(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Also on the occasion of the International Day of the Midwife was a prestigious event in Ethiopia. Former President of the Ethiopian Nurse Midwives Association (ENMA), Sister Kiros Kebede, received a Gold Modal Award given to her by member...

Birthing and the birthing transition in Thailand: Penny Haora and Streerut Thadakant examine current birthing issues in a country where midwifery is not yet an autonomous profession but maternal deaths have been reduced.(Clinical report)
December 1, 2006... The processes and practices surrounding birthing in Thailand and the factors determining maternal health have changed considerably in recent decades. A significant contribution to the transition in birthing outcomes was the effectiveness of...

'The evidence is strongly in favour of midwives as the main providers'--says The Lancet; The Lancet has published a landmark series of articles on 'Maternal Survival' that show strong support for expanding midwifery: Elizabeth Duff reports from the launch.
December 1, 2006... On September 28, 2006, a state-of-the-art series of papers on 'Maternal survival' was published by The Lancet. The conclusions of the authors emphasise the importance of a midwife attending births, and propose that women should for optimum...

Continuity, change and collaboration in midwifery: from Japan, memories of a midwife at 95 years of age; and from India, news of a new project to improve midwifery education and care for safe motherhood.
December 1, 2006... Yukino Abo, aged 95, writes: 'I remember the event that made me want to become a midwife. I was six, and hadn't even started elementary school. The wife of our clan's eldest son had gone into labour, and my mother was summoned in the...

HIV, AIDS and infant feeding.(Worldwide news)
December 1, 2006... On World AIDS Day, December 1, 2006, the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA) issued a statement warning that infant feeding policies aimed to avert transmission of HIV from mother to child can put babies at risk of death from the...

African Regional Health Report.(Worldwide news)(HIV/AIDS)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... This new report from WHO provides a comprehensive analysis of key public health issues and progress in Africa: * HIV/AIDS continues to devastate the region, which has 11% of the world's population and 60% of the people living with HIV, but...

Calls for UN agency for women.(Worldwide news)
December 1, 2006... A UN panel has endorsed a suggestion by Stephen Lewis, the UN special envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa, to create an agency that focuses solely on women. On World AIDS Day, Lewis said that HIV/AIDS disproportionately affects women and a...

Healthcare information for all.(Worldwide news)
December 1, 2006... By 2015, every, person worldwide will have access to an informed healthcare provider. The availability of relevant, reliable clinical knowledge will no longer be a major factor in mortality and morbidity in the developing world. This is...

Congress held in Recife Brazil/Congreso realizado: Recife, Brasil: 20 de junio, 2006.(Worldwide news)(RELACAHUPAN)(Latin American and Caribbean Network for the Humanization of Birth)
December 1, 2006... Participation in the RELACAHUPAN (Latin American and Caribbean Network for the Humanization of Birth) at the Round Table in Recife Brazil. Theme: Traditional Medicine And Municipal Health Systems. One of the main objectives of the...

Advocating for the right to contraception.(Worldwide news)
December 1, 2006... On December 1, World AIDS Day, a 5-metre high copper cross showing a pregnant teenage girl crucified was due to be set up in Copenhagen. The sculpture, called 'In the name of God' is a global outcry, from the controversial Danish sculptor Jens...

Midwifery education in Bolivia.(Worldwide news)
December 1, 2006... Following her article in the last issue of IM, Ulrika Rehnstrom of UNFPA has announced that the Nurse Association in Bolivia, together with Save the Children, WHO and UNFPA Bolivia, is going ahead with development of curricula for midwifery...

Muslim scholars speak out against FGM.(Worldwide news)
December 1, 2006... Senior Muslim scholars from around the world, including conservative clerics from Egypt and Africa, spoke out at a conference in Cairo in November against female genital mutilation (FGM). The gathering, organised by a German human rights...

Protecting breastfeeding in the Philippines.(Worldwide news)
December 1, 2006... The Philippines government has introduced strengthened regulations for the marketing of baby foods, after reports that baby food companies were offering financial incentives for health workers if families were converted to use breastmilk...