Midwifery in 2024: How to Empower Women and Transform Lives
"Lesley Page reflects on the profound impact of midwifery and its potential to shape a healthier, more equitable world."
The start of a new year presents an opportunity to reflect on past achievements and envision the future. For midwives, this reflection is particularly poignant, as their work is deeply intertwined with new beginnings and the promise of a healthier world. Lesley Page shares her insights on the evolving role of midwifery and its potential to create lasting change.
Each birth represents a new life entering the world, carrying with it the potential for health, productivity, and positive change. Midwives play a crucial role in nurturing this potential, breaking cycles of neglect, poverty, and violence, and fostering love, strong relationships, and family integrity. As we navigate the complexities of the modern world, the importance of their work cannot be overstated.
In a world marked by division, inequality, and displacement, midwives offer a beacon of hope. Their dedication makes a significant difference in the lives of babies, mothers, and families, contributing to a more connected and compassionate society. It's crucial to recognize and support the vital role midwives play in building a better future for all.
Midwifery’s Direction
In “New year and the promise of new life,” Lesley Page shares her thoughts on the direction of midwifery in 2017. The source provides a perspective on the profession’s direction, rather than current statistics or quantified impact.
Defining Midwifery Practice
The Midwifery Interventions Classification (MIC) study aims to develop and validate an evidence-based, standardized taxonomy of core midwifery interventions, supporting systematic midwifery data collection and taking a salutogenic perspective on maternity care. The American College of Nurse-Midwives’ standards describe care spanning pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum, sexual and reproductive health, gynecologic health, family planning, preconception care, and primary care across the lifespan, including care for healthy newborns during their first 28 days. A 2025 review uses the CFIR framework to synthesize stakeholder perspectives on barriers and facilitators to implementing midwifery-led care during transitions, highlighting contextual and organizational influences. Together, these sources point to the value of clear intervention definitions and attention to implementation conditions.
The Central Role of Midwives: Empowering Women and Families
At the heart of midwifery lies a commitment to the well-being of women, babies, and families. Each midwife has the power to contribute to a healthy start in life, fostering secure bonds of love and family integrity. Despite organizational challenges, the individual midwife's impact remains profound. Midwives are uniquely positioned to make a difference, offering compassionate care, empowering women to make informed choices, and advocating for their rights.
- Ensure every woman receives respectful care that recognizes her autonomy and choices.
- Provide the highest level of midwifery skill through education and compassion.
- Work in partnership with women and families to promote well-being.
- Reduce the effects of poverty, social inequalities, and over-intervention.
- Contribute to a culture change that supports midwives in doing their best.
Research Across Midwifery
The Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health is the official journal of the American College of Nurse-Midwives and publishes research and current knowledge relevant to midwifery practice, policy, education, research, and workforce development in the United States. Elsevier’s journal Midwifery publishes peer-reviewed research on the safety, quality, outcomes, and experiences of care during pregnancy, labour, birth, and the postnatal period and beyond. Springer Nature and Nature also present midwifery research and discoveries through subject collections. These sources identify journals and collections for tracking research, rather than reporting a particular new study or finding.
Comparing Care Models
A 2018 study classified women by their prenatal care provider at the first prenatal visit—midwife or physician—and compared birth outcomes using intent-to-treat analyses. A separate comparison reported that midwife-led care within a continuum was associated with a higher probability of spontaneous childbirth, lower use of epidural anesthesia and operative vaginal birth, and fewer childbirth complications than midwife-led care without a continuum. In another setting, changes to maternity-care organization from 2010 gave midwives greater independence to provide antenatal care for low-risk women, and midwifery-led care became essential for low-risk births. These sources examine different comparisons and contexts, so their findings should not be treated as one pooled estimate.
Transforming Healthcare: The Future of Midwifery
Midwives are uniquely positioned to improve health outcomes, save lives, and support the best possible start in life. By working collaboratively and advocating for evidence-based practices, midwives can drive positive change in healthcare systems worldwide. Now more than ever, there is a perfect opportunity to jump-off and ensure that everyone is giving their best.
Research, Respect, and Equity
A 2025 study of midwives’ opinions and engagement found that participants acknowledged clinical research’s value in advancing midwifery practice, while identifying limited time, organizational support, and other barriers to engagement. Expert commentary on birth experiences argues that respectful maternity care and a secure birthing environment depend on policy-level recognition of how those experiences affect women’s and families’ health and well-being. The American College of Nurse-Midwives describes the Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health as advocating health equity, access to quality care for all persons, and excellence in midwifery. Together, these sources connect research engagement with respectful care and equity as priorities for practice and policy.
Emerging Trends and Pressures
A 2024 article on midwifery trends describes a profession evolving alongside healthcare-system and technology advances, while noting that its discussion of emerging issues refers to 2026. NurseLink Healthcare’s 2026 overview highlights personalized maternity care, technology, and collaborative support as current and emerging trends. A 2026–2030 women’s health outlook projects that obstetric-unit closures will continue as fertility rates remain at record lows, and that the fem-tech market will grow from the drive for personalized women’s health care. These are outlooks and trend summaries, not quantified forecasts in the material provided.
Expanding Midwife-Led Care
A case study on midwife-led birthing centres in four countries describes midwives as essential primary health-care providers with potential to improve sexual, reproductive, maternal, newborn, and adolescent health outcomes. It notes that much of the evidence on midwife-led birth centres comes from high-income countries, while describing further opportunity for this model. A WHO report says that greater coverage of midwife-delivered interventions could help health systems provide effective coverage of essential services for these populations, while also noting challenges to realizing that potential. A University of Minnesota case-study source reports projected growth in midwifery care and increasing demand for the midwifery model, and describes rural expansion as one proposed component of a broader response.
In the UK, innovative policies like the National Maternity Review's Better Births initiative are paving the way for transformative change in England, with new policies expected in Scotland. Globally, midwifery programs are demonstrating their value in saving lives, reducing interventions, and improving the quality of care. A creative, skilled, and knowledgable profession is able to transform.
Wherever you work, reflect on your approaches, use your skills and knowledge, and advocate for the potential of midwifery. Be respectful, not only to women and families but also to your colleagues. Value yourself and your work, and remember that the work you do is of utmost importance. Your work is powerful and will ripple out into the world and through generations.