Bump2Baby

22/07/2026

Research to improve outcomes for premature babies has been a focus for NIHR for a few years. Here, a researcher reports on what they found when interviewing parent and health professionals about implementation of a care package.
Improving outcomes for premature babies: here's a report from one of several NIHR funded research projects

This insightful SafetyNet webinar explored findings from PremPath, ...

23/03/2026

Were you offered the option of a midwife-led unit for your most recent birth? Did it seem like a valid option?

From the author: "So, births in midwifery-led units in the UK have more than halved since 2016, with most of that decline happening since 2021. In 2023-4 around 5% of births took place in midwifery-led units, compared with around 12% in 2016. Findings from this study, based on unique data from the UK Midwifery Study System, and funded by the NIHR (National Institute for Health and Care Research) through the Policy Research Unit in Maternal and Neonatal Health and Care, were published a few days ago - still in pre-proof, and are available here https://lnkd.in/eJfrgbGp
In discussing these research findings, I have often been told that births in midwifery-led units are reducing because the birthing population is 'more complex'. The nature of this increased complexity is not well-evidenced and seems unlikely to fully explain the scale and pace of the changes we have seen. Note that of the UK nations, Wales has not followed the same pattern in terms of midwifery-led unit births, and their rates are now close to pre-pandemic levels. It seems unlikely that women giving birth in Wales are much less 'complex' than those giving birth in England.
We have a public health crisis in UK maternity (and particularly in England) with caesarean birth rates that are higher (and increasing more rapidly) than in pretty much any other comparable nation. Outcomes for babies have improved somewhat (we are pretty much in the middle compared with other European countries), but women are being exposed to ever increasing levels of intervention. Planned birth in a midwifery-led unit, for women who are eligible, is pretty much the best option available to us to reduce intervention, without increasing the risk for babies. In our UKMidSS studies, caesarean birth rates for women admitted to midwifery-led units are typically around 5%. And for carefully selected women with complexity (e.g. BMI>35, previous PPH, diet-controlled diabetes) admitted to midwifery-led units we also see really good outcomes (https://lnkd.in/em9gzxZg).
The International Union for Conservation of Nature has a 'Red List' of threatened animal and plant species - the criteria for considering a species as 'endangered' are: (i) a population reduction of at least 50%, (ii) over the past 10 years, and (iii) where the causes or reduction many not have ceased or may not be understood. If birth in a midwifery-led unit was an animal or a plant, we would be considering how to make conditions more favourable for it's continued existence. What are we doing to ensure that women still have this option in years to come?"
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S026661382600080X

10/03/2026

"Perceiving birth as traumatic was seen as a catalyst for rippling after-effects, with widespread impact both personally, and in their experience of healthcare professionals. Women were observed to have engaged in what may be perceived as maladaptive coping strategies to contain and control the associated shockwaves."

Did you experience birth trauma? What did you find yourself doing in order to cope, and how did others help?

Remember, we run the Bump2Baby parents voices group linked to this page so you can discuss issues more privately.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871519226000120

10/12/2025

This is one of the stories from the MuM-PreDiCT parent advisory group. I am so proud of Jen for sharing her incredible story.

Jennifer Pearce was told at a young age that having a baby would likely be impossible. This is her story. https://www.aims.org.uk/journal/item/multimorbidity-motherhood-possible

02/12/2025

The acceptability of Group B Strep testing was under scrutiny as part of the GBS3 research project - this paper reports on the results, and found that most women and health professionals were happy with screening tests.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S037837822500252X?dgcid=coauthor

01/12/2025

The maternity journey for women with two or more long term health conditions is often more challenging, for a variety of reasons. I'm very proud to have worked on the MuM-PreDiCT project, including working with the Association for Improvements in the Maternity Services (AIMS) on this journal.
A huge thank you to the mothers and researchers who contributed articles.
https://www.aims.org.uk/journal/index/37/4

28/11/2025

Epidurals in labour - this article is an interesting read and there are links to research papers in there. Did your epidural work as expected? Are there questions about epidurals (and other pain relief) that researchers should be answering?
Remember, if you don't want to share personal stories on a public page, you can join the Bump2Baby parents voices group for a private discussion.

Here’s what you should know before getting an epidural – and why it might not provide full pain relief as expected