Looking for ideas of comfort measures for your birth? Considering using movement and different labor positions, but don't know much about them? This is a great book full of photos and brief descriptions that can help give you some good ideas of different positions that you can try during your labor and delivery.

The delivery of high quality and equitable care for both mothers and newborns is complex and requires efforts across many sectors. The United States spends more on childbirth than any other country in the world, yet outcomes are worse than other high-resource countries, and even worse for Black and Native American women. There are a variety of factors that influence childbirth, including social determinants such as income, educational levels, access to care, financing, transportation, structural racism and geographic variability in birth settings. It is important to reevaluate the United States' approach to maternal and newborn care through the lens of these factors across multiple disciplines. Birth Settings in America: Outcomes, Quality, Access, and Choice reviews and evaluates maternal and newborn care in the United States, the epidemiology of social and clinical risks in pregnancy and childbirth, birth settings research, and access to and choice of birth settings.

The main aim of this practical Handbookis to strengthen counselling and communication skills of skilled attendants (SAs) and other health providers, helping them to effectively discuss with women, families and communities the key issues surrounding pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum, postnatal and post-abortion care. Counselling for Maternal and Newborn Health Careis divided into three main sections. Part 1 is an introduction which describes the aims and objectives and the general layout of the Handbook. Part 2 describes the counselling process and outlines the six key steps to effective counselling. It explores the counselling context and factors that influence this context including the socio-economic, gender, and cultural environment. A series of guiding principles is introduced and specific counselling skills are outlined. Part 3 focuses on different maternal and newborn health topics, including general care in the home during pregnancy; birth and emergency planning; danger signs in pregnancy; post-abortion care; support during labor; postnatal care of the mother and newborn; family planning counselling; breastfeeding; women with HIV/AIDS; death and bereavement; women and violence; linking with the community. Each Session contains specific aims and objectives, clearly outlining the skills that will be developed and corresponding learning outcomes. Practical activities have been designed to encourage reflection, provoke discussions, build skills and ensure the local relevance of information. There is a review at the end of each session to ensure the SAs have understood the key points before they progress to subsequent sessions.

Most women give birth in hospitals, institutions modelled around the needs of the people who work there. The delivery room is designed around the obstetric bed which was designed for the benefit of the obstetrician rather than the woman giving birth. Despite research showing the benefit of upright positions in labour and birth, most women in the UK still give birth in the semi-reclined position, pushing their baby out against the forces of gravity. The author argues that unnatural positions make labour and birth more painful and difficult for modern women than it was for their ancestors. How did we come to put the needs of care givers above those of the labouring woman? Is there anything that can be done? Starting with a short history of birth furniture, Dynamic Positions in Birth goes on to explore the anatomy and physiology of labour from an evolutionary perspective and explores how rethinking positions for labour and birth could benefit mothers and their babies. Equally important is the need to change attitudes to birth so that women are encouraged to play a more active part in the birth of their babies instead of being subjected to clinical interventions designed to mitigate the adverse effects of labouring in a starkly unnatural environment. Margaret Jowitt argues that it is possible to give women labouring in hospital a better chance of giving birth naturally. The book concludes by calling for a fresh look at the environment for birth. Delivery rooms can be made more user friendly by introducing furniture designed around women’s need for physical support during labour as well as for the birth, and by hiding away the more alarming technology unless it is needed. Women need a less forbidding environment and more encouragement to move freely and adopt positions which will enhance their chance of achieving a normal birth.

"Where was this book when I was a new nurse just learning the ropes of labor and delivery? This is a true gem of a book-a must for any new grad going into labor and deliveryÖ.I recommend this book for every labor and delivery floor." Cindy Curtis, RNC, IBCLC, CCE Former Director, The Family Birth Center Culpeper Regional Hospital Lignum, VA "The best one stop reference book for the experienced and noviced Labor and Delivery RN....Finally an excellent Labor and Delivery book by RN's -- for RN's." Garla DeWall, RNC Presbyterian Hospital in the Family Birthing Center Albuquerque, New Mexico Labor and delivery nursing requires critical thinking, constant caring, teamwork, and communication. As the first line of defense to prevent injury, labor and delivery nurses take on some of the most difficult and trying challenges in the delivery room. Murray and Huelsmann present this clinically oriented guide to help labor and delivery nurses make wise decisions in the delivery room. The authors provide a wealth of insight on how to maximize both maternal and fetal outcomes. This book provides authoritative guidance on intervention options, creation of patient-centered plans of care, and improved communication with other members of the obstetrics team. Special Features: Explains the stages and phases of delivery, pain management, patient assessment, and much more Features references, relevant graphics, skills checklists, and review questions at the end of each section Useful for RNs new to the field, seasoned practitioners looking for updated methods and data, and nurses preparing for certification and licensure With this book, nurses will gain the confidence and competence to approach labor and delivery challenges with care and efficiency.