Preface : Family-Centred Maternity and Newborn Care: National Guidelines

• Previous Chapter
• Table of Contents
• Next Chapter

Purpose of the guidelines

The Family-Centred Maternity and Newborn Care: National Guidelines are intended to assist health care organizations, providers, program planners, policy makers, administrators and families to propose, plan, implement and evaluate maternal and newborn health care policies and practices. They are not considered clinical practice guidelines (CPGs), although CPGs originating from such bodies as The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC), and the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), as well as from the provinces (such as British Columbia’s perinatal guidelines), have been extensively consulted to determine the optimal recommended principles and practices.

Many factors were considered in developing these guidelines, including: the strengths and limitations of technological developments in maternal and newborn health care; the richness of the Canadian mosaic with its culturally diverse population; the recognition of Canada’s responsibility to Indigenous Peoples; the multifaceted nature of health care that incorporates psychological, social, cultural and spiritual components, in addition to biological health; the changing nature of families as they face evolving economic and social demands; and our country’s vast geographical and climatic challenges. These considerations have been filtered through the lens of the Canada Health Act and its primary objective which is “to protect, promote and restore the physical and mental well-being of residents of Canada and to facilitate reasonable access to health services without financial or other barriers”.

The opening chapter introduces the overall philosophy and guiding principles underlying family-centred maternal and newborn care in Canada. Chapters 2 to 5 review maternal and newborn care during the transition to parenthood from the preconception period, through pregnancy, labour and birth, to early postpartum care (including transition to the community). Chapter 6 focuses on breastfeeding and Chapter 7 on perinatal loss and grief. Chapter 8 describes the organization of maternal and newborn care services. Chapter 9, an epilogue, provides insights into future directions for maternal and newborn care in Canada.

Acknowledgements

The Family-Centred Maternity and Newborn Care: National Guidelines have been produced in collaboration with the Oversight Committee who have provided innumerable hours of their time and expertise since the beginning of the update in 2012. We thank them for their incredible contribution, including:

The revisions to the Family-Centred Maternity and Newborn Care: National Guidelines could not have been completed without the tremendous effort and cooperation of many individuals and organizations who participated in the update. We thank each of the authors who are listed at the front of each chapter.

The Public Health Agency of Canada would also like to thank the members of the Interdepartmental Working Group for their collaboration and expert review of content.

• Previous Chapter
• Table of Contents
• Next Chapter