The closure of rural and remote maternity services: Where are the midwives?
The closure of rural and remote maternity services: Where are the midwives?
Midwifery
Abstract: Decisions to close small maternity units in rural and remote communities have often precipitated a community response as women and families rally to save local services. But where are the midwives? We argue here that professional bodies such as colleges of midwives have a responsibility to advocate more strongly at a political level for evidence-based decisionmaking regarding the allocation of rural services. We suggest that adopting a comprehensive definition of maternity services risk that considers both social and health services risks and their impact on clinical risk, could provide a solid basis for effective advocacy by professional bodies.
- Urls: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0266613816300092
- Keywords: Commentary, Risk, Rural and remote, Maternity service, Advocacy