Virginia Schmied

• Western Sydney University

Background Service gaps continue in hospital and community-based postnatal care despite a high prevalence of physical and mental health concerns reported by women following birth. The aim of this study was to describe the postnatal journey and the care provided to women and their babies who were at low risk for health complications from birth to di...

Background Children and families from priority populations experienced significant psychosocial and mental health issues to the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet they also faced significant barriers to service access, particularly families from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. With most child and family health nurse clinics ceasing in...

Aims To examine immigrant and minority parents' experiences of having a newborn infant in the neonatal intensive care unit and explore healthcare professionals' experiences in delivering care to immigrant and minority families. Design A meta‐ethnographic review informed by eMERGe guidelines. Methods We conducted a systematic literature review. St...

Background Children and families from priority populations experienced significant psychosocial and mental health issues to the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet they also faced significant barriers to service access, particularly families from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. With most child and family health nurse clinics ceasing in...

Aim The aim of this study is to explore how immigrant women and men from India construct mental health and mental illness in the perinatal period. Design Qualitative interpretive design. Methods Data were collected by conducting in‐depth interviews with 19 participants. Photo elicitation, free listing and pile sorting were used during the intervi...

Background Evidence suggests that enhanced midwifery care may lead to reduction of antenatal distress among pregnant women. Nevertheless, the access/uptake and outcomes for expectant mothers from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds may be limited. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of enhanced midwifery care in redu...

Aims: To map the pathway and service provision for pregnant women whose newborns require admission into the surgical neonatal intensive care unit at or soon after birth, and to examine the nature of continuity of care (COC) provided and the facilitators and barriers to woman- and family-centred care from the perspective of women/parents and health...

Objective: To synthesize the evidence on the benefits and risks of cobedding for infant twins and to assess the perceptions and practices of parents and health care workers regarding this practice. Data sources: We searched the following databases for articles published between 1997 and 2022: CINAHL, Cochrane, Ovid MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, and G...

Background: Perinatal mental health disorders are one of the leading causes of maternal illness and suffering and care and services need to be well coordinated by an interprofessional team who are skilled in working collaboratively. Aim: The aim of this paper is to describe the design and evaluation of an innovative interprofessional education i...

Aims: The primary aim of the review was to provide an overall assessment of residential parenting services in Australia, by describing the characteristics of infants and parents using residential parenting services, their prior service use and reasons for admission, referral pathways for access and parenting and infant outcomes. The secondary aims...

Background : Systematic reviews have shown that midwifery continuity of care programs lead to improvements in birth outcomes for women and babies, but no reviews have focused specifically on the impact of midwifery continuity of care on maternal mental health outcomes. Objective : To systematically review the available evidence on the impact of mi...

Objective To identify and synthesize the available evidence on the effect of different positions (prone, supine, and right and left lateral) on nonautonomic outcomes for preterm infants admitted to the NICU. Data Sources We searched the CINAHL, MEDLINE, Scopus, and Cochrane databases for reports of primary research studies using a three-step strat...

Aims and objectives The aim of this study was to explore fathers’ perceptions and experiences of support in the perinatal period. Change in society has seen the increased visibility of fathers being involved during pregnancy and engaging in their infants’ lives and the expectation and benefits of men playing an equal and direct role in caring for t...

Background and objectives: Watch Me Grow - Electronic (WMG-E) platform is an online resource to enhance the capacity of general practitioners (GPs) to involve parents in developmental surveillance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the acceptability and perceived utility of WMG-E. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with GPs/pa...

Background There is a tiered healthcare system in Australia to support maternal and child health, including, non-psychiatric day stay and residential parenting services (RPS) such as Tresillian and Karitane (in New South Wales [NSW]). RPS are unique to Australia, and currently there is limited information regarding the healthcare trajectory of wome...

Beliefs, practices and perceptions of early child development informing school readiness were examined for parents of preschool‐aged children living in one multicultural suburb in Western Sydney, Australia. Survey data (N = 87) and semi‐structured interviews (N = 52) with parents were collected in public spaces (e.g., parks, libraries, church halls...

Background While continuity of care is a core element of high-quality maternity care, it is potentially even more important for pregnant women and their partners who are at risk of adverse health outcomes because of psychosocial vulnerability. However, little is known about how a coherent care journey can be ensured for women and families who may r...

Background In 2019 the Australian government released a guiding document for maternity care: Woman-centred care strategic directions for Australian maternity services (WCC Strategy), with mixed responses from providers and consumers. The aims of this paper were to: examine reasons behind reported dissatisfaction, and compare the WCC Strategy agains...

Background Mental health and psychosocial concerns such as domestic violence in pregnancy and after birth are significant issues. Maternal health, social and environmental contexts have a direct influence on child development and long-term health. However, midwives, nurses and other health professionals lack confidence and skills in assessing, supp...

Background In many countries caesarean section rates are increasing and this impacts on choices made around mode of birth in subsequent pregnancies. Having a vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC) can be a safe and empowering experience for women, yet most women have repeat caesareans. High caesarean section rates increase maternal and neonatal morbi...

Infant regurgitation is common during infancy and can cause substantial parental distress. Regurgitation can lead to parental perception that their infant is in pain. Parents often present in general practitioner surgeries, community baby clinics and accident and emergency departments which can lead to financial burden on parents and the health car...

Background Experiencing complications in pregnancy is stressful for women and can impact on fetal and maternal outcomes. Supportive encounters with health professionals can reduce the worry women experience. Further research is needed to understand women’s perspectives on communicating with their healthcare providers about their concerns. Aim This...

Exploring constructions of mental health in the perinatal period among Indian immigrants can be challenging. This article describes the use of visual methods, photo elicitation, free listing and pile sorting, as an adjunct to face-to-face interviews to understand the constructions of perinatal mental health among Indian immigrants in Australia. The...

Background There is a tiered healthcare system in Australia to support maternal and child health, including, non-psychiatric day stay and residential parenting services (RPS) such as Tresillian and Karitane (in New South Wales [NSW]). RPS are unique to Australia, and currently there is limited information regarding the healthcare trajectory of wome...

Objective This paper reports findings from a study about women's experience of postpartum psychosis which affects 1-2 women in 1000 in the first four to six weeks following childbirth. Previous research reports many women are relucent to disclose symptoms of mental ill health to healthcare professionals, although they are most likely to discuss sym...

Despite experiencing high rates of sexual violence, there is limited research that explores coping and support needs among trans women of color and those from migrant backgrounds. This article examines the impact of sexual violence, as well as responses and support needs in relation to sexual violence, among 31 trans women of color, aged between 18...

Introduction: Transgender (trans) women of color navigate the intersected identity frames of gender, race, social class and sexuality, whilst facing multiple layers of stigma, discrimination and violence during and following gender affirmation. However, little is known about the ways in which trans women of color negotiate gender affirmation, in t...

Background Across the globe, many women including economic and humanitarian migrants receive inadequate antenatal care. Understanding the difficulties that migrant women encounter when accessing maternity care, including the approach of health professionals, is necessary because inadequate care is associated with increasing rates of morbidity and m...

Background Pregnant women and partners with psychological and/or social challenges are exposed to adverse health outcomes. It is therefore recommended that they receive targeted maternity care services. The relationship between parents and professionals is key to help parents engage with services and experience them as supportive. However, more kno...

Problem While comprehensive psychosocial assessment is recommended as part of routine maternity care, unless women engage and disclose, psychosocial risk will not be identified or referred in a timely manner. We need to better understand and where possible overcome the barriers to disclosure if we are to reduce mental health morbidity and complex p...

Background Many women living in Middle Eastern countries report negative, dehumanising experiences of childbirth. Finding effective ways of changing maternity care to improve women’s experience is needed but is challenging. Aim This paper explores the potential strategies to improve birthing experiences of women in Jordan and identifies the facili...

Targeted services are recommended to pregnant women/parents in vulnerable positions to support their well-being and improve health outcomes; however, being offered extra services is associated with feelings of fear and anxiety. Adopting an ethnographic approach, we explore what parents fear, how and why they experience fear, and how this shapes the...

Background Being present during labour and birth can, for some fathers, result in feelings of fear, uncertainty, anxiety, and helplessness. Witnessing birth complications or adverse events may cause immediate and long-term anxiety and stress. In turn, this experience can impact on men’s sense of self and identity as a man and father and can affect...

Background: Preterm infants routinely require enteral feeding via nasogastric or orogastric tubes as an alternative to oral feeding to meet their nutritional needs. Anecdotal evidence suggests variations in practice related to correct tube placement and assessment of feed intolerance. Purpose: To determine the current practices of enteral feedin...

Background Organisational culture and place of birth have an impact on the variation in birth outcomes seen in different settings. Aim To explore how childbirth is constructed and influenced by context in three birth settings in Australia. Method This ethnographic study included observations of 25 healthy women giving birth in three settings: hom...

This paper discusses the way that trans women embody their transgender identity, focusing on identity questioning, gender dysphoria, clinical gatekeeping and medicalized narratives. Situated within the hermeneutics methodological approach, we adopted the unobtrusive research as our research method, where data was derived from online forums where tr...

Transgender (trans) women are at higher risk of sexual violence than cisgender women, with trans women of color reported to be at highest risk. This study examined subjective experiences of sexual violence for 31 trans women of color living in Australia, average age 29 (range 18–54), through in-depth interviews. An additional photovoice activity an...

Background: Vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC) is a safe mode of birth for most women but internationally VBAC rates remain low. In Australia women planning a VBAC may experience different models of care including continuity of care (CoC). There are a limited number of studies exploring the impact and influence of CoC on women's experiences of p...

Background: Overwhelmingly, women in Middle Eastern countries experience birth as dehumanising and disrespectful. Women's stories can be a very powerful way of informing health services about the impact of the care they receive and can promote practice change. The aim of this study is to examine Jordanian women's experiences and constructions of l...

Background: Childbirth in Australia occurs predominantly in a biomedical context, with 97% of births occurring in hospital. A small percentage of women choose to birth outside the system - that is, to have a midwife attended homebirth with risk factors, or a freebirth, where the birth at home is intentionally unattended by any health professional....

In Australia, one of the most frequent reasons for not breastfeeding is a previously unsuccessful experience. This qualitative study used an appreciative inquiry approach to co‐design a model of peer and professional breastfeeding support, in a metropolitan area of New South Wales (NSW) Australia, in collaboration with women who have had previous n...

Background: Overwhelmingly, women in Middle Eastern countries experience birth as dehumanising and disrespectful. Aim: To examine Jordanian women’s experiences and constructions of labour and birth in different settings (home, public and private hospitals in Jordan, and Australian public hospitals), over time and across generations. Method: A quali...

This chapter will focus on how women and their families know and trust midwives and doctors, and why this is important for the journey they make. How does fear and anxiety influence women in the choices they make for their care during pregnancy, birth and beyond? The power of a trusting relationship and how this can change the experiences for women...

Background Overwhelmingly, women in Middle Eastern countries experience birth as dehumanising and disrespectful. Aim To examine Jordanian women’s experiences and constructions of labour and birth in different settings (home, public and private hospitals in Jordan, and Australian public hospitals), over time and across generations. Method A qualitat...

Background: Privacy is related to a person's sense of self and the need to be respected and it is a key factor that contributes to women's satisfaction with their birth experiences. Aim: To examine the meaning of privacy for Jordanian women during labour and birth. Method: A qualitative interpretive design was used. Data were collected through...

Objective To examine the characteristics of women and babies admitted to the residential parenting services (RPS) of Tresillian and Karitane in the first year following birth. Design A linked population data cohort study was undertaken for the years 2000–2012. Setting New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Participants All women giving birth and babi...

An online forum analysis was conducted to explore experiences of sexual violence and safety among transwomen, with a particular focus on transwomen of colour. Four online forums were chosen for the analysis. Three key themes were identified: dating and violence in intimate relationships; fear of violence and safety strategies; and coping after sexu...

Background Children from refugee backgrounds are less likely to access appropriate health and social care than non-refugee children. Our aim was to identify refugee children’s health/wellbeing strengths and needs, and the barriers and enablers to accessing services while preparing for primary and secondary school, in a low socio-economic multicultu...

Migrants to Thailand come from low‐income border countries, such as Burma (Myanmar). Generally, migrant women experience difficulties obtaining high‐quality health care due to socioeconomic barriers and conflicts with their practices. The aim of this study was to explore migrant Burmese women's experiences of becoming a mother while living in Thail...

Background: Significant efforts by governments at a global and national level have not resulted in a significant increase in the duration of breastfeeding to six months. The views of family and social networks, and community attitudes particularly around breastfeeding in public, influence infant feeding decisions. Yet many interventions designed t...

Background: Decisions about infant feeding are embedded and are continuously made within a woman's social and cultural context. Despite the benefits of breastfeeding to both women and infants, and government policies and laws to protect and promote breastfeeding, breastfeeding in public remains a controversial issue. The purpose of this paper is t...

Background: Most women who have a caesarean can safely have a vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC) for their next birth, but more women have an elective repeat caesarean than a VBAC. Methods: The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences of women planning a vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC) in Australia, the interactions wi...

Aims and Objectives This qualitative study explored the experiences of neonatal nurses with facilitating closeness between parents and babies with congenital abnormalities in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Background Babies with congenital abnormalities often require admission to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Parents may experience e...

Objective: To explore women's experience of skin-to-skin contact and what women want in the first two hours after a caesarean. Design: Audio recorded interviews were conducted with women as a part of a larger video ethnographic research study where video recordings, observations, field notes, focus groups and further in-depth interviews were conduc...

Background Improving breastfeeding support to mothers has been the focus of several national and international health organizations. There is evidence that theoretical and clinical education improves breastfeeding knowledge and attitudes among nursing and other health professional students prior to clinical placement, to support women who are breas...

Objectives: The aim of this meta-ethnographic review was to examine refugee women's experiences negotiating motherhood and maternity services in a new country with a view to identifying the specific needs of refugee women accessing maternity care in high income countries. Design: A meta-ethnographic synthesis of qualitative research. Data sourc...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe Burmese migrant women’s perceptions of health and well-being during pregnancy, their health promoting practices and their experiences with the Thai antenatal services. Design/methodology/approach The study used an ethnographic design. Observations were conducted in two antenatal clinics in souther...

Background Depression and anxiety are common during the antenatal and postnatal period, and are known to have a significant impact on the woman and her unborn infant. Pregnant women state a preference for non-pharmacological treatment options, and use complementary medicines and therapies to manage these symptoms. We examined the effectiveness and...

Background: Anecdotally, the number of Australian women who choose unregulated birthworkers to support a homebirth without a registered midwife present is increasing. Aim: To explore the experiences and reasons why some women choose unregulated birthworkers for a homebirth, and examine what they might do if changes in legislation removed this ch...

Background: Australian governments provide free services to promote maternal and child health, and to support parenting for families with children up to age five. Services are principally provided by dedicated child and family health nurses, but also by general practitioners, practice nurses, pharmacy nurses and midwives. Aim: This study aimed to e...

This study aimed to explore Australian parents’ use of universally available well‐child health services. It used an online survey of 719 parents of children aged from birth to 5 years in all states and territories to examine patterns of service use and consumer preferences. In Australia, several health professional groups provide advice to pregnant...

Background: Optimal nutrition during the first year of life is critical to infants' healthy growth and development. Hence, it is vital that undergraduate health professional curricula provide good quality learning environments to enable students to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to support breastfeeding mothers. Aims: To examine the...

Background Lack of breastfeeding support is often cited by mothers as one of the key reasons for premature weaning. The experiences and perceptions of breastfeeding mothers in a range of contexts and their support needs have been studied, but there has been little exploration of the specific breastfeeding topics that women are investigating via soc...

Background: Pregnancy is a time of enormous body transformation. For those with an eating disorder during pregnancy this time of transformation can be distressing and damaging to both the mother and the child. In this meta-ethnographic study, we aimed to examine the experiences of women with an Eating Disorder in the perinatal period; that is duri...

Background: In Australia, the provision of homebirth services by unregulated birthworkers (doulas, ex-registered midwives, traditional midwives and lay workers) has increased. Accessing a homebirth with a registered midwife via mainstream services is limited. Concern is growing that new legislation aimed at prohibiting unregulated birthworkers pra...

Aims and Objectives This study aims to examine the characteristics and service needs of women and babies admitted to Residential Parenting Services (RPS) in the first year following birth in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Background In Australia there is a tiered system to support maternal, child and family health, which includes residential pa...

Objectives Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a global health issue affecting mainly women and is known to escalate during pregnancy and impact negatively on obstetric and perinatal outcomes. The aim of this study is to determine the incidence of IPV in a pregnant multicultural population and to determine the relationship between IPV reported at bo...

Background: The Australian Breastfeeding Knowledge and Attitude Questionnaire-Short Form (ABKAQ-SF) was designed to measure breastfeeding knowledge and attitudes of health professionals. To date, a Chinese version of the attitude component of the ABKAQ-SF (ABAQ) is not yet available and has not been cross-validated with nursing students. Research...

Problem: Providing skin-to-skin contact in the operating theatre and recovery is challenging. Background: Barriers are reported in the provision of uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact following a caesarean section. Aim: To explore how health professionals' practice impacts the facilitation of skin-to-skin contact within the first 2h following a...

Background Breastfeeding support from health professionals can be effective in influencing a mother’s decision to initiate and maintain breastfeeding. However, health professionals, including nursing students, do not always receive adequate breastfeeding education during their foundational education programme to effectively help mothers. In this pa...

Background: Gastro-oesophageal reflux (GOR) is common in infants. When the condition causes pathological symptoms and/or complications it is considered gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD). It appears to be increasingly diagnosed and causes great distress in the first year of infancy. In New South Wales (NSW), residential parenting services su...

Problem: Post-traumatic stress disorder and post-traumatic stress symptoms following birth occur amongst a small proportion of women but can lead to poor maternal mental health, impairment in mother-infant bonding and relationship stress. This integrative review aims to examine the associated risk factors and women's own experiences of postnatal p...

For many mothers in Australia, worries about pregnancy, birth and parenthood have become a source of considerable anxiety. Although apprehension and heightened concern are normal responses to change, raised expectations, contradictory information, the increased surveillance of mental health issues and a fragmented health system may contribute to th...

Consumer involvement in health care is widely accepted in policy and service delivery. Australia offers universal health services for families with children aged 0 to 5 years, provided by child and family health nurses and general practitioners. Services include, but are not limited to, monitoring and promoting child health and development, and sup...

Infant well-being is intrinsically linked to maternal physical and emotional well-being. Internationally health services have implemented policies to identify women at risk of mental health problems and developed effective care pathways. The aim of this paper is to describe how perinatal and infant mental health clinicians perceive their role and t...

Purpose: This article explores the development and evaluation of a smartphone mobile software application (app) to collect qualitative data. The app was specifically designed to capture real-time qualitative data from women planning a vaginal birth after caesarean delivery. This article outlines the design and development of the app to include fun...

Background: Interpreters (lam in Thai) have been employed in maternity services in Thailand due to increasing numbers of Burmese women migrating to Thailand. Access to healthcare interpreters is crucial for health professionals and Burmese migrant women using Thai maternity services but no studies have examined the role of the lam. Aim: This pap...