Team Midwifery — The Scunthorpe Experience

The House of Commons Select Committee Report (1992), and more recently the Changing Childbirth report (1993), suggest that the lack of continuity experienced by women and professionals within the traditional system of maternity care is no longer appropriate nor desirable. Informs the reader how Scunthorpe Maternity Services had already recognized the need to reduce fragmentation and raise standards and how a strategy was developed, in response to these deficiencies, which planned to replace the traditional model of care with one of integrated team midwifery. Also describes the process undertaken in the transformation of services, highlights the impact of such changes on the midwives and midwifery practice and discusses developments for future consideration.