Affiliation:
1. Associate Lecturer, Faculty of Health Social Care and Education, Anglia Ruskin University
Abstract
Excellent bioscience education is required in midwifery to understand normal physiology of childbirth and neonatal adaptations to life, complications that may arise, pre-existing medical conditions and relevant pharmacology. The childbearing population is becoming more medically complex and the new draft ‘Standards of Proficiency for Midwives’ requires midwives to possess a high level of bioscience knowledge. Within nursing ‘the bioscience problem’ has been studied, and suggests insufficient bioscience knowledge within the workforce, leading to poorer staff confidence and patient outcomes. Does ‘the bioscience problem’ need to be investigated within midwifery?