A message from one of our sponsors
The Association of Radical Midwives (ARM) in the U.K. is delighted to continue supporting the Virtual International Day of the Midwife. This year is particularly special for ARM as we celebrate our 50th anniversary. In 1976, a meeting between two student midwives in the U.K. discussing their mutual concerns about the increasing medicalisation of birth, led them to form the ARM. Artificial Rupture of Membranes (ARM) is a key process of labour induction and it seemed fitting to use these initials to name this organisation. The word radical was used in the sense of Radix (Lat. “root”) to express the desire of midwives to return to the fundamentals of care “with woman”.
ARM’s central aim has not changed. We are committed to the midwife woman relationship being the cornerstone of high quality maternity care. We believe that inappropriate interventions are damaging to mother and baby. We are always looking for new members and we welcome anyone who shares our aims. Our vision is that midwives are supported to be autonomous and empowered practitioners who support women in their choices in all aspects of childbirth. Our website link is here: https://www.midwifery.org.uk/history/#:~:text=The%20word%20’Radical’%20is%20used,the%20woman%20and%20her%20child.
Over the past year we have collaborated with over one hundred organisations to provide a response to the Investigation into Maternity & Neonatal Services led by Baroness Amos. The National Maternity & Neonatal Collective have produced a framework on how maternity services in England can be transformed. You can find this document with a comprehensive supporting evidence list here:
Our other significant collaboration has been in relation to the provision of the NHS home birth service following the Coroners inquest into the tragic deaths of Jennifer Cahill and her daughter Agnes. We worked with AIMS and BirthRights to publish an open letter calling on all those involved in maternity services to ensure ‘that all women and birthing people will in future be safely supported wherever they choose to give birth’. ARM has recently been invited to be a member of the National Home Birth working group. The link to the open letter is here
ARM is marking the 50th anniversary with a conference in London on Saturday, 20th of June. ‘Midwifery Must Matter’ – Honouring our past to inform our future. We have invited a range of speakers including several who were involved in the very early days as well as leading names in the midwifery world and others working to improve maternity services. For more information the link is here: https://www.midwifery.org.uk/conference/
Wishing you all a wonderful Virtual International Day of the Midwife!
