Impact of midwife continuity of carer on stillbirth rate and first feed in England.

Roebuck, C; Sandall, J; West, R; Atherden, C; Parkyn, K; Johnson, O

Impact of midwife continuity of carer on stillbirth rate and first feed in England.

Roebuck, C Sandall, J

West, R Atherden, C Parkyn, K Johnson, O

Permalink

Publisher:: Springer Nature
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Commun Med (Lond), 2025, 5, (1), pp. 339
Issue Date:: 2025-08-07

Open Access

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Open Access

This item is open access.

Adobe PDF

Download Published versionAdobe PDF (627.49 kB)

View on publisher's site

View statistics

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Roebuck, C
dc.contributor.author	Sandall, J https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2000-743X
dc.contributor.author	West, R
dc.contributor.author	Atherden, C
dc.contributor.author	Parkyn, K
dc.contributor.author	Johnson, O
dc.date.accessioned	2025-08-18T22:14:58Z
dc.date.available	2025-07-10
dc.date.available	2025-08-18T22:14:58Z
dc.date.issued	2025-08-07
dc.identifier.citation	Commun Med (Lond), 2025, 5, (1), pp. 339
dc.identifier.issn	2730-664X
dc.identifier.issn	2730-664X
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/189469
dc.description.abstract	BACKGROUND: In 2017 NHS England started rolling out a model where women have continuity of carer with the same midwifery team throughout the perinatal period. This study uses national data to test whether women of different groups receiving midwife continuity of carer had lower stillbirth rates and higher rates of a first feed of breast milk than women receiving standard care. METHODS: We compared the two outcomes for women placed on the midwife continuity of carer pathway by 24 weeks and women receiving standard care in England, with logistic regression standardising between groups. We used the Maternity Services Dataset covering 922,149 women conceiving between 2020 and 2022. RESULTS: Combining all demographic groups, women on a midwife continuity of carer pathway have a higher first feed of breast milk rate (p < 0.001), but do not show a difference in stillbirth rate, compared to women receiving standard care. However, Black women on this pathway have lower stillbirth rates (p = 0.047) compared to Black women receiving standard care, the only demographic group showing a difference. Women with no antenatal appointment at all by 24 weeks have much higher stillbirth rates than those with an appointment (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The findings that midwifery continuity of carer increases the first feed of breast milk uptake, which has health benefits. It may decrease stillbirth rates for Black women. Both findings inform future policy development and research. Further investigation and outreach around women not coming forward for timely antenatal care may also be beneficial.
dc.format	Electronic
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	Springer Nature
dc.relation.ispartof	Commun Med (Lond)
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1038/s43856-025-01025-z
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.title	Impact of midwife continuity of carer on stillbirth rate and first feed in England.
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	5
utslib.location.activity	England
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2025-08-18T22:14:57Z
pubs.issue	1
pubs.publication-status	Published online
pubs.volume	5
utslib.citation.issue	1

Abstract:

BACKGROUND: In 2017 NHS England started rolling out a model where women have continuity of carer with the same midwifery team throughout the perinatal period. This study uses national data to test whether women of different groups receiving midwife continuity of carer had lower stillbirth rates and higher rates of a first feed of breast milk than women receiving standard care. METHODS: We compared the two outcomes for women placed on the midwife continuity of carer pathway by 24 weeks and women receiving standard care in England, with logistic regression standardising between groups. We used the Maternity Services Dataset covering 922,149 women conceiving between 2020 and 2022. RESULTS: Combining all demographic groups, women on a midwife continuity of carer pathway have a higher first feed of breast milk rate (p < 0.001), but do not show a difference in stillbirth rate, compared to women receiving standard care. However, Black women on this pathway have lower stillbirth rates (p = 0.047) compared to Black women receiving standard care, the only demographic group showing a difference. Women with no antenatal appointment at all by 24 weeks have much higher stillbirth rates than those with an appointment (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The findings that midwifery continuity of carer increases the first feed of breast milk uptake, which has health benefits. It may decrease stillbirth rates for Black women. Both findings inform future policy development and research. Further investigation and outreach around women not coming forward for timely antenatal care may also be beneficial.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/189469