A unique and innovative resource for conducting ethnographic research in health care settings, Ethnographic Research in Maternal and Child Health provides a combination of ethnographic theory and an international selection of empirical case studies. The book begins with an overview of the origins and development of ethnography as a methodology, discussing underpinning theoretical perspectives, key methods and challenges related to conducting this type of research. The following substantive chapters present and reflect on ethnographic studies conducted in the fields of maternal and child health, neonatal nursing, midwifery and reproductive health. Designed for academics, postgraduate students and health practitioners within maternal and child health, family health, medical sociology, medical anthropology, medicine, midwifery, neonatal care, paediatrics, social anthropology and public health, the book will also illuminate issues that can help health practitioners to improve service delivery.

Offering the keen insight and expertise of a new author team and new contributors, the Fourth Edition of Kotch's Maternal and Child Health: Problems, Programs, and Policy in Public Health continues to offer a comprehensive, trusted introduction to the field of maternal and child health (MCH), while addressing the traditional MCH topics in a modern context that includes race/ethnicity, an expanded family focus, and a broadened approach that will appeal to health professionals both in and outside of public health practice. Organized according to fundamental principles of MCH, the book covers traditional MCH topics such as family planning and maternal and infant health as well as skills that are applicable across Public Heath disciplines such as planning, research, monitoring, and advocacy.

Growing research shows that many children from immigrant and refugee families are not doing well in school, due in part to linguistic and cultural disadvantages. Teaching dual-language learners requires cultural sensitivity, an understanding of language acquisition, and intentional teaching strategies. Combining research and techniques, this resource helps early childhood educators support dual-language learners as they develop the skills necessary for school readiness and success.

Mapped to the UNICEF Baby Friendly Learning Outcomes, this new edition of Pollard’s essential textbook ensures readers are equipped with the essential knowledge and skills to eff ectively promote and support breastfeeding mothers. Breastfeeding is a major public health issue. Not only does breastmilk provide all the nutrients a baby needs for their fi rst six months, but research shows it also helps to protect infants from infection and reduce obesity, as well as helping to protect mothers from some diseases in later life. Although many women want to breastfeed, rates drop rapidly in the fi rst days and weeks after giving birth. Women need the support of their midwives and health visitors when establishing breastfeeding and throughout their children’s infancy. This comprehensive and accessible text covers: anatomy and physiology building relationships essential skills and good practice guidance dealing with common problems public health considerations mothers needing additional support babies with special needs; and complementary feeding and weaning. Suitable for midwifery and nursing students, as well as practitioners undertaking continuing professional development, Evidence-based Care for Breastfeeding Mothers is designed to aid learning. Each chapter begins with specific learning outcomes linked to the Baby Friendly Learning Outcomes, key fact boxes, clinical scenarios and activities.

Breastfeeding: New Anthropological Approaches unites sociocultural, biological, and archaeological anthropological scholarship to spark new conversations and research about breastfeeding. While breastfeeding has become the subject of intense debate in many settings, anthropological perspectives have played a limited role in these conversations. The present volume seeks to broaden discussions around breastfeeding by showcasing fresh insights gleaned from an array of theoretical and methodological approaches, which are grounded in the close study of people across the globe. Drawing on case studies and analyses of key issues in the field, the book highlights the power of anthropological research to illuminate the evolutionary, historical, biological, and sociocultural context of the complex, lived experience of breastfeeding. By bringing together researchers across three anthropological subfields, the volume seeks to produce transformative knowledge about human lactation, breastfeeding, and human milk. This book is a key resource for scholars of medical and biological anthropology, evolutionary biology, bioarchaeology, sociocultural anthropology, and human development. Lactation professionals and peer supporters, midwives, and others who support infant feeding will find the book an essential read.

The opportunities and comfortable lifestyle available to most Australians have been denied to generations of Indigenous people. As a result some of Australia's original inhabitants suffer from what has been described as 'Fourth World' standards of health. This is out of place in a country that prides itself on egalitarianism and a fair go for all. Shifting the focus from individual behaviour, to the social and political circumstances that influence people's lives and ultimately their health, helps us to understand the origins of poor health. It can also guide action to bring about change. Social Determinants of Indigenous Health offers a systematic overview of the relationship between the social and political environment and health. Highly respected contributors from around Australia examine the long-term health impacts of the Indigenous experience of dispossession, colonial rule and racism. They also explore the role of factors such as poverty, class, community and social capital, education, employment and housing. They scrutinise the social dynamics of making policy for Indigenous Australians, and the interrelation between human rights and health. Finally, they outline a framework for effective health interventions, which take social factors into consideration. This is a groundbreaking work, developed in consultation with Indigenous health professionals and researchers. It is essential reading for anyone working in Indigenous health.

The family can be a model of loving support, a crucible of pathology, or some blend of the two. Across disciplines, it is also the basic unit for studying human relationships, patterns of behavior, and influence on individuals and society. As family structures evolve and challenge previous societal norms, new means are required for understanding their dynamics, and for improving family interventions and policies. Emerging Methods in Family Research details innovative approaches designed to keep researchers apace with the diversity and complexities of today's families. This versatile idea-book offers meaningful new ways to represent multiple forms of diversity in family structure and process, cutting-edge updates to family systems models and measurement methods, and guidance on the research process, from designing projects to analyzing findings. These chapters provide not only new frameworks for basic research on families, but also prime examples of their practical use in intervention and policy studies. Contributors also consider the similarities and differences between the study of individuals and the study of family relationships and systems. Included in the coverage: Use of nonlinear dynamic models to study families as coordinated symbiotic systems. Use of network models for understanding change and diversity in the formal structure of American families. Representing trends and moment-to-moment variability in dyadic and family processes using state-space modeling techniques. Why qualitative and ethnographic methods are essential for understanding family life. Methods in multi-site trials of family-based interventions. Implementing the Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST) to analyze the effects of family interventions. Researchers in human development, family studies, clinical and developmental psychology, social psychology, sociology, anthropology, and social welfare as well as public policy researchers will welcome Emerging Methods in Family Research as a resource to inspire novel approaches to studying families.