MNMC Midwife flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

ICM Essential Competencies

A global framework of the knowledge, skills, and behaviours a midwife must demonstrate, organised across the continuum from pre-pregnancy through labour, birth, and ongoing care of woman and newborn.

Competency-based curriculum

An educational design in which learning outcomes are defined by required competencies, and progression depends on demonstrated performance in real or simulated clinical settings rather than time served alone.

Clinical preceptor role

A qualified midwife who supervises, teaches, and assesses students in the clinical setting, providing direct feedback and confirming competence in observed practice.

Accreditation cycle

A recurring, outcome-focused review of a midwifery programme involving self-study, external peer review, site visit, decision, and monitoring of required improvements.

Simulation in midwifery education

Structured practice with manikins, task trainers, or role-play to rehearse emergency skills such as shoulder dystocia or haemorrhage before real clinical exposure.

Direct-entry midwifery programme

A pre-registration route that prepares students for midwifery practice without requiring prior nursing qualification, covering the full midwifery curriculum and supervised clinical hours.

Scope of practice

The range of roles, activities, and responsibilities a midwife is educated, competent, and authorised to perform under law and registration, with referral required beyond that range.

Informed consent

An ongoing process of giving complete information about benefits, risks, and alternatives, confirming understanding, and respecting the woman's voluntary decision, including refusal.

Contemporaneous documentation

A record made at the time of the event or as soon as practicable, capturing findings, decisions, discussions, and actions, signed and dated by the midwife.

Referral and escalation

A timely, documented transfer of care to an appropriate professional when the situation exceeds the midwife's scope, with continued responsibility until handover is complete.

Confidentiality duty

The obligation to protect personal health information, disclosing only with consent or where required by law, safeguarding duties, or serious public health risk.

Continuing professional development

Mandatory ongoing learning and reflective activity required to maintain registration, update competence, and keep practice aligned with current evidence.

Emergency drill

A rehearsed team exercise for a defined obstetric or neonatal emergency, used to test roles, communication, equipment readiness, and response times.

Partnership with the woman

A model in which the midwife shares information, respects the woman's values and decisions, and supports her as the central decision-maker in her care.

Beneficence and non-maleficence

The paired ethical duties to act in the woman's best interest and to avoid causing harm, weighing benefits against risks in every care decision.

Respect for autonomy

The ethical principle that the woman's informed choices about her care are respected, even when they differ from the midwife's professional recommendation.

Conscientious objection

A limited right to decline participation in a specific procedure on moral grounds, provided the midwife does not abandon the woman and ensures safe referral.

Professional boundaries

Limits that keep the midwife-woman relationship therapeutic, prohibiting dual relationships, exploitation, and personal involvement that could compromise care.

Mandatory reporting

A legal or regulatory duty to report suspected child or vulnerable adult abuse, or unsafe practice by a colleague, to the designated authority.

Social media conduct

Rules requiring no identifiable patient information, no clinical images without consent, and no disparaging remarks about patients or colleagues in online spaces.

Conflict of interest

A situation where financial or personal interest could bias clinical judgement; it must be declared, and gifts or benefits that may influence care are refused or reported.

Fitness to practise

The regulatory process assessing impairment, misconduct, or incompetence, with outcomes ranging from conditions on practice to suspension or removal from the register.

Justice in midwifery ethics

The principle requiring fair, equitable access to care and treatment, without discrimination based on race, religion, disability, sexuality, or socioeconomic status.

Respectful maternity care

Care that maintains dignity and privacy, prevents mistreatment and neglect, and ensures effective communication and informed choice throughout pregnancy, birth, and the postnatal period.

Evidence-based practice

Clinical decisions that integrate the best available research evidence, the midwife's expertise, and the woman's values, preferences, and circumstances.

Clinical audit

A quality cycle that measures current practice against an agreed standard, implements change, and re-audits to confirm improvement.

Plan-do-study-act cycle

A structured improvement method: plan a change, test it on a small scale, study the results, and act to adopt, adapt, or abandon before wider spread.

Maternal mortality ratio

The number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in a defined period, a core indicator of the quality and safety of maternity services.

Severe maternal morbidity

Near-miss complications such as haemorrhage, sepsis, or eclampsia that nearly caused death; a sensitive indicator of obstetric care quality.

Incident reporting

A safety system for recording adverse events and near misses without blame, enabling analysis of causes and system-level prevention.

Continuity of midwifery care

A model where the woman is cared for by a known midwife or small team across pregnancy, birth, and postnatal period, associated with fewer interventions and higher satisfaction.

Family-centred care

Care that engages the partner and family according to the woman's wishes and supports bonding, breastfeeding, and newborn wellbeing.