You have the right to refuse to see a health visitor
Jo Broughton describes how she gave birth without problems to her 10lb 8oz baby in Glasgow. She saw no reason to see a health visitor but was then reported to Social Services
Experiences of third stage
Jill compares the differences between a managed third stage and a normal one.
Waterbirth - changing attitudes
Avril Nicoll, Kirstin Hoggins and Phyllis Winters reflect on the process of change undergone by the midwives at Montrose community maternity unit where waterbirth is now more than a choice.
Report your own adverse effects
Jean Robinson reports on the extension of the yellow card scheme www.yellowcard.gov.uk for reporting adverse affects of drugs, to allow patients as well as doctors to report these problems.
Just a role play?
Alice Charlwood volunteered to play the mother in a workshop on whether women are allowed to exercise informed choice, and learned first hand how difficult it can be.
Assertiveness - fine in theory, difficult in practice
Earlier this year one of our Committee members, Shane Ridley, circulated some thoughts on being assertive and compiled a guide to help people think through the issues. It encouraged a flurry of debate, from which the following thoughts emerged:
Ten years after a stillbirth - how good care can make all the difference
Shane Ridley describes her experience of the stillbirth of Katie Eva and how during those times the kindness and compassion of midwives and doctors made such a difference. She and her husband had all the support from professionals that she could have wished for, even though it was at a time of great sadness.
Blood money for what? The continuing saga
In the AIMS Journal (Vol 16, No 4), Professor Naomi Pfeffer, a sociologist and historian who researches and writes about human tissue collection and stem cell research and therapy, explained why unregulated private blood banks threaten to exploit pregnant women. George Macridis, Managing Director of Future Health Technologies responds.
AIMS Journal, 2026, Vol 38, No 2 By Tamara Blakemore The First Breath I’m a birth artist, and apparently I’m here to talk about the sovereignty of the body, which feels s…
AIMS Journal, 2026, Vol 38, No 2 By Camille Del Pozo and Anne Glover on behalf of the AIMS Campaigns Team Background AIMS wrote to Neil Gray, the Cabinet Secretary for He…
AIMS Journal, 2026, Vol 38, No 2 By Alex Smith Welcome to the June 2026 edition of the AIMS journal. This issue is about the sovereignty of the body in pregnancy and chil…
MIDIRS is proud to sponsor the first-ever RCM Top 10 Maternity Research Priorities Symposium. This virtual event will bring together midwives, researchers, and maternity…
South Asian women continue to experience disproportionately poor outcomes in maternal and neonatal care with overwhelming evidence that these disparities are driven by sy…
Join us for one of our series of interactive online AIMS workshops " The Foundation Stones for Supporting the Physiological Process in Pregnancy and Birth ". Please follo…
A forthcoming parliamentary debate on the petition calling for the appointment of a Maternity Commissioner ‘to improve maternity care for mums and babies’ is scheduled fo…
Thank you for inviting organisations to offer evidence to the investigation. AIMS has welcomed this investigation, and we stand ready to support it, drawing on our partic…
London, Wednesday 4th March 2026 A key component of ensuring maternity service provision that is safe, personalised and equitable, is the provision of a robust and sustai…