Transforming Midwifery Practice - HEA00174M

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Module will run

Occurrence	Teaching period
A	Semester 1 2026-27 to Semester 2 2026-27

Module aims

Note: This document uses the word 'women’ throughout. This should be taken to include people who do not identify as women but are pregnant or who have given birth.

• Critically analyse and evaluate the evidence base for improvement and change in midwifery and maternity care, exploring and critiquing a range of contemporary examples of improvement projects.
• Critically analyse and evaluate methodological approaches and theoretical perspectives which drive and sustain improvement and change in midwifery, maternity and other relevant contexts.

Note: This is the capstone module (40 credit) of the MMid programme. During this module, theory and practice learning weeks are interspersed to enable students to initially engage in relevant theory, and thereafter consult, develop ideas, implement and evaluate their improvement project. Early engagement with maternity staff within Local Maternity Systems, Heads of Midwifery and members of the midwifery education team will support students to propose, develop, refine and operationalise improvement projects which are of clear clinical/educational/professional relevance and benefit - ultimately for public good. Students will be assigned a project supervisor.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students will be able to:

1. Critically evaluate the evidence for, and impact of, improvement and change in midwifery and maternity care, appraising methodological approaches and theoretical perspectives.
2. Systematically plan, negotiate, design, implement and evaluate an innovative, small scale improvement project, derived through evidence-based analysis and synthesis of pertinent literature and policy and in consultation/collaboration with relevant stakeholders (e.g. women, families and newborns, midwives, the maternity workforce).
3. Exercise self-direction, autonomy and reflexivity, identifying transferable professional skills and knowledge that will advance continuing professional development.

Module content

Quality improvement methodologies; systematic approaches to improving safety, experience and effectiveness of care; processes & activities to promote quality care for all; implementing and evaluating change management; service evaluation; quality and safety; human factors; strength based approaches; social change; skills to enhance advocacy, negotiation & challenge; reflexivity; collaborative skills to implement & evaluate evidence-informed change at individual, group, and service level; digital skills & innovation.
Continued active engagement with, and demonstration of, the themes and learning outcomes of UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) University Standards.
Please see detailed mapping of this module to NMC (2019) Standards of proficiency for midwives for the programme.

Indicative assessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100.0

Special assessment rules

Non-compensatable

Indicative reassessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100.0

Module feedback

Written feedback for the summative assessment is provided on the standard proforma, within the timescale specified in the programme handbook.

Indicative reading

Church, S. et al. (Ed). (2017). New thinking on improving maternity care - international perspectives. London: Pinter & Martin.
Collins, B. (2018). Adoption and spread of innovation in the NHS. [Online]. Available from:
https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/innovation-nhs [Accessed 11 March 2022].
David, S. (2019). Values-based leadership in healthcare: congruent leadership explored. Los Angeles: SAGE.
Lambert, C., Jomeen, J. and Mcsherry. (2010). Reflexivity: a review of the literature in the context of midwifery research, British Journal of Midwifery, 18 (5) pp. 321 -326.
McEwan, J. & Bedford, H. (2021). Digital health innovation to support sensitive enquiry about female genital mutilation. British Journal of Midwifery, 29 (5) pp. 252-259.
NHS Leadership Academy. (2022). Learning hub. [Online]. Available from:
https://www.leadershipacademy.nhs.uk/learning-page/ [Accessed 11 March 2022].
O’Brien, N. Van Dael, J. Clarke, J. et al. (2022). Addressing racial and ethnic inequalities in data driven health technologies. Institute of global health innovation. Imperial College London [Online]. Available from: https://spiral.imperial.ac.uk/bitstream/10044/1/94902/2/Imperial_IGHI_AddressingRacialandEthnicInequities%20_Report.pdf [Accessed 11 March 2022].
Public Health England. (2021). Early Years high impact area 3: supporting breastfeeding. [Online]. Available from:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/commissioning-of-public-health-services-for-children/early-years-high-impact-area-3-supporting-breastfeeding [Accessed 11 March 2022].
Sheila McKechnie Foundation. (2018). Social power (the social change project). [Online]. Available from: https://smk.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/SMK_SocialChangeProject_Digital-Pages.pdf
[Accessed 11 March 2022].

The King’s Fund. (2017). Embedding a culture of quality improvement [Online] Available from:
https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/embedding-culture-quality-improvement
[Accessed 11 March 2022].
The King’s Fund. (2018). Approaches to better value: improving quality and cost. [Online] Available from: https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/approaches-better-value [Accessed 11 March 2022].
The King’s Fund & The Health Foundation. (2017). Making the case for quality improvement. [Online] Available from: https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/making-case-quality-improvement [Accessed 11 March 2022].
Western, S. (2019). Leadership: a critical text. (3rd ed). London: SAGE.