Journal of midwifery & women's health最新文献

Applications driven by large language models (LLMs) are reshaping higher education by offering innovative tools that enhance learning, streamline administrative tasks, and support scholarly work. However, their integration into education institutions raises ethical concerns related to bias, misinformation, and academic integrity, necessitating thoughtful institutional responses. This article explores the evolving role of LLMs in midwifery higher education, providing historical context, key capabilities, and ethical considerations. Using insights from a US-based midwifery program, it highlights strategies for responsible LLM integration, including faculty development, classroom applications, and policy updates. The discussion addresses challenges such as mitigating bias, preventing plagiarism, and fostering critical thinking while ensuring that LLM-fueled applications remain a tool rather than a substitute for student learning. Practical approaches, including faculty training and student guidance, offer a replicable framework for leveraging LLM tools in professional health education while maintaining academic standards and equity.

Pass rates for the American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB) national certification examination (NCE) are declining. Accreditation Commission for Midwifery Education–accredited midwifery education programs are challenged to meet institutional pass rate goals and support graduates seeking to enter the midwifery workforce. There are financial, emotional, and social consequences for graduates who do not pass the AMCB NCE that undermine their success. A large, distance-based nurse-midwifery/women's health nurse practitioner program is successfully improving its AMCB NCE pass rates via an innovative, structured, and tuition-free Boards Reboot & Readiness course. Designed for at-risk students and graduates, the course emphasizes a trauma-informed approach, focusing on self-reflection, community building, content review, and high-intensity faculty support. Student feedback and outcomes have informed iterative enhancements and revisions.

Limited maternity care access is a significant challenge affecting rural communities across the United States and Colorado, and midwives are a viable solution to closing these gaps. The Health Resources and Services Administration's MatCare grant program was designed to increase access to midwifery care for underserved populations through support for midwife trainees who will work in rural and underserved communities after graduation. We operationalized the MatCare aims to create the Colorado Rural Midwifery Workforce Expansion Program. In this program, the students follow the rural midwifery track and complete the Preparation for Rural Professional Practice (PRPP) curriculum. The PRPP is a cocurricular program that provides future rural midwives with additional didactic and clinical training opportunities, leadership development, and mentorship that will support the growth of midwifery in rural areas. A rural workforce preparation program equips midwives with specialized knowledge and skills that support their integration into rural environments. Midwives have the potential to improve access to health care when employed as primary maternity care providers.

Perineal repair is a skill that student nurse-midwives must achieve competency in before graduating and entering practice. Students and new midwives often express a lack of confidence in their ability to undertake perineal repair. This article aims to share one public university nurse-midwifery program's experience developing and implementing a suturing education program with an interprofessional approach. We designed a workshop that optimized student confidence and competence in suturing by incorporating the best evidence. Components of this workshop included interprofessional education, leveraging of technology, online preparatory materials for students to reference and practice before attending, allowing time for in-person practice and return demonstration with instructor feedback, and evaluation of student competence at the end of the session. The lack of evidence for best practices in suturing education for student midwives highlights interprofessional suturing education—where midwives, medical students, and obstetric interns learn together—as a promising area for future research. Optimizing student competence through interprofessional education enhances new midwives’ skills and confidence and fosters collaboration and trust among professions with shared clinical responsibilities, ultimately improving outcomes for providers and patients.

Nationally, midwifery educators are often perplexed when graduates from their programs are not successful on the American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB) certification examination. Often, these students are excellent clinically and have a deep foundational knowledge. During examination reviews with professors, they may be able to explain a concept well orally but struggle to pick the correct answer. Emerging cognitive science can be applied to test-taking heuristics to better understand how students make choices on multiple-choice tests. Helping students understand and develop metacognition and using a trauma-informed pedagogy will give educators a new lens for teaching test-taking strategies. By applying a new method, midwifery educators can dispel common test-taking myths, help their students understand their cognitive bias when taking tests, and ultimately build students’ confidence when approaching high-stakes tests. By changing their approach to test-taking advice, educators can help more students pass the certification on the first attempt and increase the speed at which new graduates are ready to enter the workforce.

Taking care of your health is one of the most important things that you can do for yourself. If you are in good health, then you can take care of those who need your help. The more we know about our health, the better we can prevent certain health conditions or find them early. This handout reviews the health screenings and vaccines that are recommended for adults of all ages.

You can discuss how often you should be seen for a health check-up and which tests would be helpful for you with your health care provider. Screening tests give you information about your overall health. Vaccinations recommended for healthy people who have received the recommended childhood vaccinations are also listed. Your health care provider may offer some screening tests earlier than recommended, depending on your health history, family history, or if you are having symptoms of a health problem.

The recommendations in this chart are general suggestions. It is important to discuss the tests and vaccines with your health care provider. Recommendations by your health care provider depend on your personal health history. Your health care provider may suggest more frequent testing or more tests if you have a family history or personal health history that suggests you have a higher chance of getting cancer or other diseases.

Health Screenings and Immunizations for Women

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 8.8

Approved June 2025. This handout replaces “Taking Care of Your Health” published in Volume 62, Issue 3, May/June 2017.

This handout may be reproduced for noncommercial use by health care professionals to share with patients, but modifications to the handout are not permitted. The information and recommendations in this handout are not a substitute for health care. Consult your health care provider for information specific to you and your health.