1st Edition

Education for Childbirth and Parenthood

By Elizabeth R. Perkins Copyright 1980
    180 Pages
    by Routledge

    180 Pages
    by Routledge

    Originally published in 1980, the setting of this book is in the practicalities of teaching on labour wards, in antenatal clinics and in child health clinics. In such settings, health education about childbirth and parenthood is often an explicit, and always implicit, task for the health professional. The book results from several years’ research on health service teaching methods and contains detailed studies of teaching in practice, in clinics, in classes and on wards, by midwives, health visitors, physiotherapists, doctors, National Childbirth Trust teachers and the writers of educational pamphlets. A number of transcripts of teaching sessions are presented to illustrate ways in which practitioners can develop more relevant and sensitive teaching strategies. The author shows that realistic goals are essential if the needs of learners, who are also problematically ‘patients’ and ‘clients’, are to be met.

    The book offers insights into professional problems which voluntary organisations concerned with the health service and with educational work with parents, can use to help both themselves and their clients to make a more intelligent use of the facilities available. A more practical but critical philosophy of antenatal teaching is advocated, enabling all professionals involved to take a fresh look at their courses and clients.

    Acknowledgements.  Foreword Diana Stockwell  1. Parents, Prospective Parents and Health Professionals  2. The Labour Ward as an Educational Setting  3. Teaching About Labour: The Contribution of Antenatal Classes  4. Clinic Booklets: Help or Hindrance in Patient Education? Elizabeth R. Perkins and Nicholas J. Spencer MRCS, MRCP, DCH  5. Parentcraft: Continuity and Change  6. Responding to Groups: Towards Better Antenatal Teaching  7. The Possibilities of Teaching in the Health Service Interview: The Problematic Case of the Child Health Clinic Doctor Elizabeth R. Perkins and Digby C. Anderson, PhD  8. Planning for Progress in Patient Education.  Bibliography.  Index.

    Biography

    Elizabeth R. Perkins