Synonyms
Definition
As there are many paths to heroism, there are many paths to heroism in midwifery. The development of midwifery, particularly in the United States, elucidates the struggles that midwives have faced in claiming and maintaining their place as caretakers of women and babies.
To explore heroism in midwifery, it is important to understand the different paths to midwifery. Today, in the United States, midwives are commonplace in the care of women and families, but this was not achieved until the last quarter of the twentieth century. When one considers how long midwives have been attending births, it is somewhat amazing that it took almost 300 years to achieve “commonplace” status in the United States. Today’s professional midwife receives training from a program that is standardized, is certified by the American College of Nurse-Midwives(ACNM), is licensed by the state in which she/he practices, and is...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Boston Women’s Health Book Collective. 1970. Our bodies, our selves. New York: Simon and Shuster. Originally published in 1970.
Breckenridge, M. 1952. Wide neighborhoods: A story of the frontier nursing service. University Press of Kentucky.
Carlyle, M. 2018. Phantoms in the classroom: Midwifery training in enlightenment Europe. KNOW: A Journal on the Formation of Knowledge 2 (1): 111–136.
Semmelweis, I 1983. The etiology, concept and prophylaxis of childbed fever. Trans. K. Carter. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.
Thatcher Ulrich, L. 1990. The life of Martha Ballard, based on her diary, 1785–1812. New York: Vintage Books, A Division of Random House.
Thompson, J., and H. Burst. 2015. History of midwifery in the US; The midwife said, fear not. New York: Springer Publishing Company.
Varney-Burst, H. 2010. History of Nurse-Midwifery Education. Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health 50 (2): 129–137.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Ewan, J. (2023). Heroism in Midwifery. In: Encyclopedia of Heroism Studies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17125-3_329-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17125-3_329-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-17125-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-17125-3
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences