BU Research Blog

14 January 2015

Evaluation mixed-methods research grant awarded to FHSS team

Dr. Janet Scammell in the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences (FHSS) is leading on a new research project evaluating the impact of a new integrated respiratory service in Dorset. The £20,000 mixed-methods research project is funded by the Wessex Academic Health Science Network on behalf of the Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group. Janet Scammell is leading a research team in BU’s new Faculty of Health and Social Sciences comprising Desi Tait, Ashley Spriggs, Martin Hind, Caroline Belchamber and Edwin van Teijlingen.

The Dorset Adult Integrated Respiratory Service (DAIRS) is a new service that has been set up early 2014 to provide support and care for people with respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), bronchiectasis and pulmonary fibrosis. The service aims to reduce the number of people who need admission to hospital and help individuals to feel more in control of their condition. BU has been asked to evaluate early uptake and impact of the DAIRS running in Poole, Bournemouth and Dorchester.

Further information about this exciting project is available from: Dr. Janet Scammell, Associate Professor and Professional Lead for Adult and Children & Young People’s Nursing

Telephone: 01202 962751

Email: jscammell@bournemouth.ac.uk

14 January 2015

Building Better Opportunities – £10 million EU/BIG Lottery funding available

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, Public engagement jcodling

Are you working with or have contacts with a Dorset based organisation that helps people back into training or work?

Does this organisation support socially excluded groups?

The new £10 million EU/BIG Lottery funded Building Better Opportunities programme for Dorset will:

Improve people’s life chances by funding projects that reflect local priorities and community needs;
Be based on evidence about what works best, and be delivered by capable providers;
Provide personalised help to people furthest from the labour market to develop their skills and talents, and overcome challenges.

There are a number of free workshops taking place across the region. Places are limited and registartion is required:

9.30am – 12.30pm Wedsnesday 28 January – Dorford Centre, Bridport Road, Dorchester DT1 1RR Book for Dorchester HERE
9.30am – 12.30pm Friday 30 January – Friends Meeting House, Wharncliffe Road, Boscombe BH5 1AH Book for Boscombe HERE
1.30am – 5.30pm Thursday 5 February, – Durweston Village Hall, Church Road, Durweston, Blandford Forum DT11 0QA Book for Blandford HERE

These workshops will:

Identify the requirements of this new EU and BIG Lottery Fund programme;
Introduce the five themes: Mental health, Young People, Rural isolation, Long term unemployed, Social Enterprise;
Introduce partnership requirements and opportunities for smaller organisations;
Enable to assess whether the programme would be right for your organisation;
Help start the process of designing the criteria the BIG Lottery Fund will use to award grants.

13 January 2015

Ireland Yawns with Dr Simon Thompson

Fusion, Grants Academy, Public engagement Simon Thompson

Yawning is something we all find ourselves doing at different times of the day and on different occasions. For some of us, it becomes a big problem especially when we need keep awake and alert so that we can accomplish important tasks.

Even parachutists are encouraged to yawn before dropping out of a plane in order to stimulate the arousal system to maintain vigilance. Cortisol (Fig 1), the naturally produced stress hormone, is now established as co-existent with the yawning reflex and with new research showing that those who yawn have higher levels of salivary cortisol than those who do not yawn (1).

Fig 1. Cortisol molecule

A curious problem is the temperature fluctuation and fatigue levels of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who excessively yawn. With a view to establishing cortisol patterns within the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, our natural stress feedback loop, centrally controlled deep within our brains, I am exploring how yawning might provide an important clue to diagnosis. Developing cortisol as a biomarker for early detection of neurological symptoms is the intended goal for research I am undertaking at Bournemouth University in collaboration with Université Paris X Ouest Nanterre La Défense, Hôpital Universitaire Amiens, Jules Verne Université de Picardie, Université Paris 8 St Denis, Université Paris 5 René Descartes, and the Clinical Research & Imaging Centre, University of Bristol.

It is hoped that people with MS may benefit with early treatment intervention that will be supported with professional care from the French and British MS Societies, Ligue Française contre la Sclérose en Plaques and the UK Multiple Sclerosis Society.

I was invited to discuss my research recently with Newstalk Irish National Radio broadcaster, Seán Moncrieff on the Moncrieff Show, 07 January 2015 (2). We feared that some listeners may in fact uncontrollably yawn but hopefully as a positive reaction to this intriguing subject!

References

1.
Thompson, S.B.N., Rose, K., Richer, S., 2014. Yawning with cortisol: examining the neuroscience behind the Thompson Cortisol Hypothesis for supporting rehabilitation of neurologically impaired individuals. Journal of Neuroscience & Rehabilitation, 1(1), 1-11, doi: 2014.01.01/2374-9091: SS0003

2.
Moncrieff Show, 07 Jan 2015:
http://www.newstalk.com/player/listen_back/8/15549/07th_January_2015_Moncrieff_Part_3

13 January 2015

Huffington Post Blog BU by PhD student Sheetal Sharma

PG research, Publishing Edwin van Teijlingen

FHSS PhD student Sheetal Sharma and ICS Integrare’s Petra ten Hoope-Bender discuss issues around the evidence to support the policy direction after the Millennium Development Goals come to end in 2015. The global research and policy community has been gathering the evidence and the lessons learnt on what has worked for whom and how. They remind us that the UN General Assembly’s Open Working Group has identified 17 new goals that cover far-reaching sustainable development issues, such as ending poverty and hunger, improving health and education, making cities more sustainable, combating climate change, and protecting oceans and forests. Read all at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/petra-ten-hoopebender/women-newborns-and-health_b_6459614.html

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

12 January 2015

BU academic honoured in Nepal

Public engagement Edwin van Teijlingen

BU Professor Edwin van Teijlingen was honoured by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Mahendra Bahadur Pandey yesterday in Kathmandu. Prof. van Teijlingen was honoured for “his contributions to capacity building and health research in Nepal.” In the presentation listing his achievements of over ten-years of research in Nepal it was highlighted that he has supervised eight Nepalese PhD students to completion in the UK as well as numerous MSc students from Nepal. Several of his former student attended the ceremony. Furthermore, Prof. van Teijlingen’s work include over 75 academic publications on Nepal and/or papers published in English-language journals in Nepal.

Prof. van Teijlingen is currently Visiting Professor at two higher education institutions in Nepal. He has been Visiting Professor since 2009 at Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences, affiliated with Tribhuvan University, and Visiting Professor since 2012 at Nobel College, affiliated with Pokhara University. He is also on the editorial board of several health journals in Nepal, including the Nepal Journal of Epidemiology and Health Prospect.

Most recently he was co-editor of an edited volume under the title The Dynamics of Health in Nepal published for Social Science Baha by Himal Books in Kathmandu. His fellow editors Prof. Padam Simkhada (Liverpool John Moores University) and Dr. Sharada Prasad Wasti were also present in the audience.

Edwin van Teijlingen is Professor of Reproductive Health Research in the Faculty of Health & Social Sciences and Director of the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal and Perinatal Health.

12 January 2015

Research dissemination event in Kathmandu

Knowledge Transfer, Public engagement Edwin van Teijlingen

Last Sunday (11^th Jan.) Green Tara Nepal presented the findings of a review on health promotion initiatives in Nepal in Kathmandu. Mr. Gangalal Tuladhar, Member of The Constituent Assembly of Nepal (the equivalent of an MP in the UK) and Former Minister for Education, chaired this dissemination event ‘Evaluation of health promotion initiatives in Nepal’. The review, coordinated by Ms. Aditi Sharma, researcher at Green Tara Nepal, identified key government, bilateral, UN agencies and voluntary organisations working in the health field. Health-related policies and intervention programmes were reviewed in this research to evaluate the position of health promotion in Nepal and gaps were identified.

The first key finding is that the definition of health promotion is generally missing in both the health sector and government documents. The review highlights further that key gaps in health promotion exist in the field of (a) mental health and (b) care for the elderly. Of the five key approaches to health promotion: (1) medical/preventive; (2) behaviour change; (3) educational; (4) empowerment; and (5) social change, the most common approaches in Nepal appears to be adhering to the ‘medical/preventative’ and ‘education’.

Geographically the focus of interventions appears to be the easier to reach districts. BU Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen observed “This concentration of activities, often in and around larger cities, is common across the globe in terms of both health service provision and health promotion interventions.” Prof. Padam Simkhada (Liverpool John Moores University and Visting Faculty at BU) highlighted the lack of coordination across those working in the wider health promotion field. Many organisations are doing interesting and useful health promotion work, but each seems to be doing so in relative isolation.

The workshop was attended by a range of international and national non-governmental organisations, national politicians, and many other stakeholders including the media. The event was covered in the national media (see picture). The Green Tara Nepal Chair Krishna Lamsal added: “This dissemination workshop follows on from the First National Health Promotion Conference in Nepal which we organised in early 2013. The conference, jointly organised by Bournemouth University, brought together nearly 300 people for the first time to discuss key issues in health promotion.”

This dissemination event of joint research is the first step to creating an impact on policies and service provision in Nepal at a national level.

Prof Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal and Perinatal Health

Faculty of Health & Social Sciences

9 January 2015

Health Link Nepal

Public engagement Edwin van Teijlingen

Today I attended an interesting Health Link event in Kathmandu with Dr. Poonam Thapa speaking on ‘Subjects to Citizens: From Safe Motherhood to Safe Womanhood’ and Prof. Kiran Bajracharya presenting on ‘Midwife related skills, SMP actions, Current initiatives and challenges’.

Prof. Bajracharya put forward a strong case in favour of a midwifery profession in Nepal based on the three ICM pillars. Prof. Bajracharya is chair of MIDSON, the Midwifery Organisation of Nepal and co-author of our paper ‘Nepal needs midwifery’.(1)

The Health Link initiative has been launched to mark the close links between the United Kingdom and Nepal in the development of Nepal’s health sector and the forthcoming 200 years of UK-Nepal diplomatic relations. Health Link has a website with information on UK-Nepal health sector coordination and cooperation. It gives information on UK organisations working on health in Nepal and publications on health in Nepal that have a UK connection. Several of Bournemouth University contributions are highlighted on the Health Link website. The initiative is also hosting a series of discussion programmes and seminars on current health topics and research carried out by British and Nepalese health workers and researchers.

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH, Faculty of Health & Social Sciences

Reference:

Bogren, M.U., Bajracharya, K., Berg, M., Erlandsson, K., Ireland, J., Simkhada, P., van Teijlingen, E. (2013) Nepal needs midwifery, Journal of Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences (JMMIHS) 1(2): 41-44. www.nepjol.info/index.php/JMMIHS/article/view/9907/8082

8 January 2015

Presenting BU research in Kathmandu

Publishing Edwin van Teijlingen

SOCIAL SCIENCE BAHA

invites you to its

Lecture Series LXXXIII

Edwin van Teijlingen
on

PARI: Strengthening Health Research in Nepal

5:30 pm • 6 April, 2015 (Thursday) • Yala Maya Kendra, Patan Dhoka

Nepal has limited capacity in health research. As a result, it leads to a restriction in the ability to implement evidence-based health care. PARI (Partnership on Improving Access to Research Literature for Higher Education Institutions in Nepal), a partnership between Tribhuvan University, three UK universities (Bournemouth, Sheffield and Aberdeen), and the Development Resource Centre, Kathmandu, is a project aimed at supporting and enhancing health research in Nepal. The main objective of PARI is to move university lecturers away from textbook teaching and make them more critical of the academic literature available on the Internet. This lecture will dwell on the experience of PARI so far as it conducts workshops in Nepalis universities introducing the foundations of evidence-based practice and outline key electronic databases of health care and health service literature available to Nepali academics. These workshops were informed by: i) a curriculum review of all health-related courses at the major universities in Nepal; and ii) a needs assessment with lecturers, librarians and students of the major universities. Learning from this experience, the lecture will suggest how best we can move away from textbook teaching in health care and teach health-care discipline students how to find the most appropriate evidence-based treatment for each patient.

Edwin van Teijlingen is Professor of Reproductive Health Research at Bournemouth University, UK. He is trained as a sociologist and his interests lie in mixed methods research, qualitative and evaluation research. A large share of his academic work has been in the field of public health and the organisation of maternity care with publications of more than 200 papers, book chapters and books. He is Visiting Professor at two universities in Nepal: Nobel College affiliated with Pokhara University and Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences affiliated with Tribhuvan University. He is book review editor of Sociological Research Online.

Professor van Teijlingen has co-edited several books, including Midwifery and Medicalization of Childbirth: Comparative Perspectives (2004); Birth by Design: Pregnancy, Midwifery Care and Midwifery in North America and Europe (2001), which was short-listed for the 2004 BSA Medical Sociology Book Prize. Most recently he is co-editor of The Dynamics of Health in Nepal, published recently by Social Science Baha.

This is a public lecture and admission is free and open to all. Seating is first-come-first-served.
Please direct queries to Kathmandu: 4472807.

8 January 2015

Transdisciplinary Arts Practice: Moving Sideways to Move Forward

djohn

We would like to invite you to the next research seminar of the Creative Technology Research Centre.

Speaker: Bill Thompson (Video & Sound Artist, Lecturer in Music and Audio Technology, Bournemouth University)

Title: Transdisciplinary Arts Practice: Moving Sideways to Move Forward

Time: 2:00PM-3:00PM

Date: Wednesday 14^th January 2015

Room: P335, Poole House, Talbot Campus

Abstract:

I’ll be discussing recent collaborative work with choreographer Ian Spink involving transdiciplinary practice across several projects in Scotland, as well as past work with choreographer Claire Pencak and archaeologists Antonia Thomas and Dan Lee at the Ness of Brodgar site in Orkney. I’ll also discuss some of my work with / against technology in my solo and sound art practice as well my experience leading collaborative arts practice workshops with Ian Spink ( fast + Dirty ) and individually ( Fail Again, Fail Better ) at Guildhall School of Music and Drama and elsewhere.

We hope to see you there.

8 January 2015

Centre for Entrepreneurship student event with Business Mania

Nikki Harvey

The Centre for Entrepreneurship continued its program of activities for BU students just before Christmas with a joint event with Business Mania, the BU student enterprise society. We were delighted that CfE tenant and student entrepreneur Robin Humphries, from award winning Static Games, was able to give a presentation to a group of 70 students about his experience of setting up a business. Robin gave the group an insight into the challenges he has faced and provided hints and tips for budding entrepreneurs.

Static Games has been a tenant in the Centre for Entrepreneurship since early 2014 and the CfE have been delighted to support the growing company, even assisting them to successfully pitch for £10,000 equity-free Creative England funding. This business event is one of many forthcoming student activities the Centre for Entrepreneurship will be involved in. If you have any student entrepreneurs on your courses who would like to find out more please do contact us: nharvey@bournemouth.ac.uk

For the full write up and video please visit the BUCFE website

8 January 2015

The Wessex Forum Event to be held at BU – – discussing ‘Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services & the Green Economy’ in the Wessex region

Business Engagement, Knowledge Exchange jcodling

Date: Wednesday 11 February

Location: Bournemouth University – Executive Business Centre

Time: Starting at 9.30am (all day event)

Event details:

The Wessex Conservation Forum aims to bring together representatives from NGOs, Universities and Government bodies for a free one day conference discussing ‘Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services & the Green Economy’ in the Wessex region. The services which nature provides us with, such as clean water, clean air, fertile soil and food, are not only crucial for the well-being of human-kind, they also represent an astronomical value. It has been estimated by economists that the loss of biodiversity was costing the EU €450 billion annually, equal to 3% of GDP. Hence, halting the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services is now a UK and EU priority for 2020.

Confirmed speakers include representatives from organisations such as: the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, the Freshwater Biological Association, Bournemouth University, University of Southampton, the Dorset Local Nature Partnership, Wessex Water and the Bournemouth & Poole Sustainable Food City Partnership. The conference will be centred around a series of talks in order to showcase research output, identify areas for further research and promote collaboration in order to fulfil these needs.

A complimentary lunch and refreshments will be provided on the day, and there will be plenty of opportunities to make and renew contacts throughout the day.

To book: This event is popular and places are limited. Click here to register for your free place.

More information: We hope to see you at this event but if you are unable to attend and want to find out more about the work that BU is involved in why not sign up to receive more information. The Wessex Portal (formerly the Poole & Purbeck Portal has been developed with the assistance of funding from the Higher Edication Innovation Fund – HEIF) as an online community to promote a better understanding of our region’s unique natural and heritage assets.

Click here to sign up to receive more information on jobs, general news and projects taking place as part of this initiative.

7 January 2015

£9.5m funding – Integrated supply chains for Energy systems

jcodling

Innovate UK has launched a funding competition with up to £9.5m available to address the need for a diverse mix of energy sources and systems.

The aim of this competition is to encourage cross-sector supply chains that can deliver integrated energy solutions to meet the many energy systems challenges of achieving a low-carbon economy by 2050.Projects should focus on both the demand and supply side across the energy networks of electricity, heat and combustible gases.

This is a two-stage competition with a first stage of feasibility studies. Up to three projects will then be chosen for follow-on collaborative research and development (R&D) following a collaboration workshop on conclusion of the feasibility stage. At each stage, projects must be led by a business.

Click here for more information here.

7 January 2015

Book launch in Kathmandu

PG research, Publishing, student research Edwin van Teijlingen

This week sees the publication of a new book co-edited by BU Professor Edwin van Teijlingen. The book The Dynamics of Health in Nepal is published for Social Science Baha by Himal Books in Nepal. The lead editor Dr. Sharada Prasad Wasti was awarded his MSc from the University of Aberdeen and his PhD from the University of Sheffield. The second editor, Padam Simkhada is Professor of International health at Liverpool John Moores University as well as Visiting Faculty in BU’s Faculty of Health & Social Sciences.

This edited volume has 13 chapters written on various health-related topics that are topical in Nepal. Many of the authors are from Nepal who completed their postgraduate studies at a UK university. The chapters cover amongst other topics such as Maternity Care, Health of the Elderly, Road Traffic Accidents, HIV/AIDS and Non-Communicable Diseases. The book will be formally launched in a hotel in Kathmandu on the morning of Sunday 11^th January.

The book also includes a chapter by BU PhD student Sheetal Sharma. She co-authored the chapter ‘Customs and believes surrounding newborn babies in rural areas’. One of her collaborator was a PhD student registered at the University of Aberdeen and another at London Metropolitan University, whilst third collaborator is the founder of Green Tara Trust, a UK-based Buddhist charity.

Copies of the book are for sale from Himal Books in Kathmandu and all profits from the book will be donated to Green Tara Nepal.

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health
Faculty of Health & Social Sciences, Bournemouth University

6 January 2015

NEW BUDI Orchestra Coming Soon!

lreynolds

Do you know someone living with dementia in Dorset who likes music?

If so, BUDI would like to invite the person with dementia and their carer to become part of a new BUDI Orchestra starting this January 2015. We would like them to share their musical talents and take part in a music evaluation hosted by BUDI and professional musicians.

We hope to evaluate the effects of a novel music initiative on their daily lives. They will have the opportunity to learn a new instrument, sing, or showcase their existing musical talents to their peers.

No previous musical experience is necessary, we’re looking for people who are willing to come along and ‘give it a go’!

For further information, please contact: Laura Reynolds on 01202 962546, or email: lreynolds@bournemouth.ac.uk.

Please disseminate this notice to anyone who you think may be interested in the project. A PDF flyer can be provided – please email: lreynolds@bournemouth.ac.uk.

6 January 2015

Ben Hicks of BUDI attends the Technology and Alzheimer’s Disease seminar held at Fondation Mederic Alzheimer, Paris

Public engagement mobrien

Recently, I was fortunate enough to represent BUDI at a one day expert group in Paris for the Fondation Mederic Alzheimer. The foundation was set up in 1999 to promote research into dementia care. The title of this seminar was ‘Technology and Alzheimer’s Disease’ with a focus on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as a means to support the independent living and well-being of people with dementia and their care partners. A group of experts from a broad range of academic disciplines including psychology, sociology, engineering and robotics were assembled to discuss the topic and outline ways to advance the area..

As expected, when bringing together a group of experts from different academic fields, the discussions were lively and thought provoking. As a PhD student undertaking research on commercial technology and dementia from a sociologist perspective, it was incredibly valuable to hear the train of thought of other academics in differing disciplines. Being part of the event and having the chance to contribute to research along with other esteemed academics (many of whom I have referenced extensively throughout my PhD thesis) was a great privilege and the links made at the event will certainly be beneficial as I finish my PhD and begin my journey as an early career researcher (The food was also incredible- The French can certainly ‘do’ food!). The seminar was recorded and the information provided will be written up for publication in a journal. For those who are interested in reading about the informative and lively discussions, I will post a link on the blog to the paper once it has been published.

5 January 2015

New Scientist Yawns! – Dr Simon Thompson

Fusion, Grants Academy, Public engagement, Research assessment, Research Ethics, Research Integritiy Simon Thompson

Why do we yawn? Dogs and cats make us yawn. We even yawn in the womb.

The first yawn of the day is usually when we awake to stretch our intercostal muscles surrounding our lungs to bring in more oxygen. Many of us recognise yawning as a sign of tiredness or boredom yet we also yawn before that important job interview. We contagiously yawn when our pets yawn and because we are empathetic towards another yawning human being. We even yawn in the womb.

As a member of the International Association for Research on Yawning, I have presented at the first international conference of neuroscientists and neurologists on yawning in Paris in 2010. Since then, I have been conducting research into this intriguing area and proposed the Thompson Cortisol Hypothesis (1;2) to explain why the naturally produced stress hormone cortisol is released during yawning – a phenomenon never reported before.

Recently, I was delighted to be invited by the prestigious New Scientist to write a piece about this curiosity that affects all of us (3) and have received so much international interest that it has encouraged me to continue this pursuit with a view to its medical application.

I am also a member of the International Scientific Committee on Research into Multiple Sclerosis (MS) which is particularly relevant to yawning as people with MS often include fatigue and excessive yawning in their reported symptoms. Meeting in Paris recently with international collaborators from Paris X Ouest University and the French Multiple Sclerosis Society, I am conducting research into induced fatigue and MS and how these variables affect cortisol levels.

It is hoped this may point towards the development of a new diagnostic tool for the early diagnosis of MS using cortisol as a biomarker.

References

Thompson SBN. The dawn of the yawn: is yawning a warning? Linking neurological disorders. Medical Hypotheses 2010;75:630-633;doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2010.08.002.
Thompson SBN. 2011. Born to yawn? Cortisol linked to yawning: a new hypothesis. Medical Hypotheses 2011;77:861-862;doi: 10.1016/j.mehy.2011.07.056.
Thompson SBN. This will make you yawn. New Scientist 2014;224(3000/3001):38-39.
Inset photo: Pynq Thompson, aged 28 days old.

Contact: simont@bournemouth.ac.uk

3 January 2015

Maternity research in Afghanistan

PG research, Publishing, student research Edwin van Teijlingen

Just after I blogged about the first publication for 2015, I was informed by BU PhD student Rachel Arnold that our article: “Understanding Afghan health care providers: A qualitative study of the culture of care in a Kabul maternity hospital” is included in the first issue of 2015 of the journal BJOG.

BU has provided Open Access funding to make this paper freely available, which is especially important for readers in low-income countries such as Afghanistan or Nepal. The paper can be found at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1471-0528.13179/pdf

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health , Bournemouth University

Reference

Arnold R, van Teijlingen E, Ryan K, Holloway I. Understanding Afghan healthcare providers: a qualitative study of the culture of care in a Kabul maternity hospital. BJOG 2015; 122: 260-267.

3 January 2015

First BU publication of 2015

Publishing Edwin van Teijlingen

Those working in the reproductive health field or in local media will be familiar with the phenomenon of the reporting of the first baby born in the New Year. For example, you may have read a short item of the first baby of 2015 born just after midnight with a lovely picture of the baby with proud parents and/or midwife.

This BU Research Blog is the equivalent of the first publication for 2015. I contributed a chapter called ‘Sociology of Midwifery’ to the edited book Sociology for Midwives published by Polity Press (Jan. 2015) and edited by Ruth Deery, Elaine Denny & Gayle Letherby.

The Polity Press website lists three reviews of the book by eminent academics in the field of midwifery:

“What is the point of sociology for midwives and midwifery? A sociological perspective can give us a different understanding of reproduction and maternity care. It can help us challenge our ‘common sense’ assumptions about how people and the world tick. This new book provides midwives and midwifery students with a readable comprehensive and up to date review of the field of sociology applied to reproduction and maternity care. The editors bring together a very impressive amount of material and present it in an accessible and clear way. Their facility for handling complex theoretical and detailed empirical material is admirable.”

Jane Sandall, King’s College London

“The editors and authors of this fine volume have produced a wonderful introduction to the value of a sociological imagination in the practice of midwifery.”

Barbara Katz Rothman, City University of New York

“The authors set out to ‘stimulate the sociological imagination’ of their readers. The combination of theoretical analysis and application of sociological theory to specific practice situations provides extensive opportunities for this to take place. Readers who are new to the sociology of maternity care will find ample material to excite and engage them. Those who already have dipped into this vast and fascinating field will find new applications, angles and perspectives that can cast a fresh light on why we do what we do in maternity care, and that provide possible routes for positive change in the future.”

Soo Downe, University of Central Lancashire

For more details of Sociology for Midwives, see: http://www.politybooks.com/book.asp?ref=0745662803

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health

Bournemouth University

Category / Research themes

Evaluation mixed-methods research grant awarded to FHSS team

Building Better Opportunities – £10 million EU/BIG Lottery funding available

Ireland Yawns with Dr Simon Thompson

Huffington Post Blog BU by PhD student Sheetal Sharma

Transdisciplinary Arts Practice: Moving Sideways to Move Forward

Centre for Entrepreneurship student event with Business Mania

The Wessex Forum Event to be held at BU – – discussing ‘Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services & the Green Economy’ in the Wessex region

£9.5m funding – Integrated supply chains for Energy systems

NEW BUDI Orchestra Coming Soon!

Ben Hicks of BUDI attends the Technology and Alzheimer’s Disease seminar held at Fondation Mederic Alzheimer, Paris

New Scientist Yawns! – Dr Simon Thompson

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