Susan Crowther - Spirituality and Childbirth

Highlighting aspects of birth often taken for granted, ignored or left silenced, this book questions the art and meaning of childbirth. Addressing spirituality in and around the start of life from a variety of thought-provoking perspectives, it examines the apparent paradox of impersonal biomedical-technocratic systems operating alongside the meaningful experiences encountered by those involved. Themes covered include:

Notions of holism and spirituality, culture, religion and spirituality

Childbirth significance at societal level

Spiritual care in maternity care provision

Birth environment, mood, space and place

Spiritual experience of all those involved, including health professionals

Spiritual experience when birth is complex and challenging

When birth and death are juxtaposed.

Although there is considerable literature on spirituality at the end of life, this is the only book that draws together a global and multidisciplinary selection of academic researchers and practitioners to reflect on spirituality at the start of life. Each chapter explores the relevant theoretical background and makes links to practice, using case studies from research and practice. The chapters conclude by discussing: how spiritual care is, and should be, provided in this context; what practice approaches are beneficial; cross-cultural perspectives; and future directions for research. It is an important read for all those interested in childbirth, maternity care, social science perspectives on health and illness, and spirituality.

Susan Crowther is Professor of Midwifery at Robert Gordon University, UK.

Jenny Hall is Senior Lecturer in Midwifery at Bournemouth University, UK.

Meaning and Care at the Start of Life

Edited by Susan Crowther and Jenny Hall

First published 2018
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

and by Routledge
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Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

2018 selection and editorial matter, Susan Crowther and Jenny Hall; individual chapters, the contributors

The right of Susan Crowther and Jenny Hall to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Crowther, Susan (Professor of midwifery), editor. | Hall,
Jenny (Lecturer in midwifery), editor.
Title: Spirituality and childbirth : meaning and care at the start of
life / edited by Susan Crowther and Jenny Hall.
Description: New York, NY : Routledge, [2017] | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017022428| ISBN 9781138229402 (hardback)
| ISBN 9781138229419 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781315389646 (ebook)
Subjects: | MESH: Parturition--psychology | Pregnancy-
psychology | Spirituality | Mother-Child Relations--psychology |
Infant Care--psychology
Classification: LCC RG652 | NLM WQ 300 | DDC 618.4--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017022428

ISBN: 978-1-138-22940-2 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-138-22941-9 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-38964-6 (ebk)

Typeset in Bembo
by HWA Text and Data Management, London

Alison Barrett, Canadian-trained specialist OBGYN and maternal and physician health advocate, currently working as a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Alison serves on the professional advisory group for La Leche League New Zealand, as well as actively supporting mothers in the community as a La Leche League group leader. Alison is a founding member of a popular social media-based support group for women doctors that seek to address the particular challenges and inequities that New Zealand women in medicine face. Alison is a member of OraTaia, the New Zealand Climate and Health Council, and is a trustee for the Home Birth Aotearoa Trust.

Slvia Caldeira, Invited Assistant Professor of Nursing at Universidade Catlica Portuguesa, Lisbon, Portugal. Slvias work focuses on spirituality in health, particularly in nursing care. Her masters in Bioethics (2008) relates to the ethical imperative of the inclusion of spirituality in nursing care, and her PhD (2013) covered the validation of nursing diagnosis spiritual distress from NANDA International. Slvia published a book in Portuguese about spirituality in nursing (2011) and has published several papers and communications about this subject. She is an elected member of the Diagnosis Development Committee of NANDA International; coordinator of the NANDA-I Portugal Network Group; member of the Centre for Spirituality Studies, University of Hull (UK); member of the European Spirituality Nursing and Midwifery Research Network; member of the International Association for Spiritual Care; and member of the Global Network for Spirituality and Health.

Susan Crowther, Registered midwife. Professor of Midwifery at Robert Gordon University Aberdeen, Scotland. Susan has practised as a midwife in many countries in various roles, e.g. caseload midwife (urban and rural regions), group practice midwife and educator, an aid worker in low-income settings, consultant midwife and researcher. Her PhD was on the experience of being at birth and was titled Sacred Joy at Birth. Susan currently leads on maternal, family and child wellbeing research. She regularly writes book chapters, peer-reviewed articles, and is on the editorial boards of four journals and reviews for others. She is a member of the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) Research Standing Committee (RSC). Susans professional interests are myriad, the main ones being: continuity of carer within maternity, professional role of the midwife, sustainable practice, spirituality and childbirth, rural and remote maternity services and hermeneutic phenomenology. The overarching theme of Susans work is relationality. Blog: drsusancrowther.com and Twitter: @susancrowtherMW