91122 - Innovative Models of Caring and Ethics in Midwifery (BO)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, the student should have acquired the knowledge and skills in maternal and child health necessary to assess needs, coordinate care pathways, ensure integrated and collaborative services, deliver gender-sensitive care, and identify the most appropriate care model

Course contents

1. Italian Socio‑Healthcare Context & EU Profiles

• State of Health in the EU – Italy, Health Profile 2025
• Key maternal‑child health and birth indicators (2024)

2. Health Determinants in the First 1000 Days

• Annual birth report
• Health promotion & early prevention
•  Parenting support & family well‑being
  

3. European Projects & Initiatives

• Children’s Environmental Health – Life MILCH (2019‑2026): environmental exposure & maternal‑child health
• 4E‑PARENT: active fatherhood, gender‑based violence prevention, deconstructing caregiving stereotypes
  

4. WHO 2021‑2025 Strategic Directives for Nursing & Midwifery

• Education, skills & professional development
• Leadership, advocacy & decision-making participation
• Service delivery & quality of care
  

5. Midwifery Science & Midwifery Sensitive Outcomes

• Midwifery interventions at national & international levels
• Clinical outcomes sensitive to midwifery care
• Maternal-child surveillance & monitoring systems
  

6. Midwifery Staffing

• Staffing principles & standards
• Safety, quality & sustainability of the childbirth pathways
  

7. Midwifery Organizational Models

• Integrated childbirth pathways
• Midwife-led pregnancy & birth care
• Community midwifery & health education
• Organizational planning for complex interventions
  

 8. Midwifery Competencies

• Clinical, relational & organizational skills
• National & international benchmarking

9. Bioethics & Obstetric Violence

• Ethical role of midwives: autonomy, safety & dignity of mother & newborn
• Support for informed choices; respect for personal values
• High-risk pregnancy, abortion, assisted reproduction, end-of-life decisions
• Preventing obstetric violence & promoting respectful practices

Readings/Bibliography

Slides and supplementary materials provided by the lecturer.

Teaching methods

The course is structured around interactive lectures and small-group seminars, designed to critically evaluate and synthesize scientific evidence

Assessment methods

Students are required to complete a project work in small groups (maximum 3-4 members), following a template provided by the lecturer, within the scope of the course. The project is designed to assess the students’ ability to apply the knowledge acquired during lectures and through the study of the provided materials.

The written project, together with a PowerPoint presentation summarizing the work, must be submitted via email to the lecturer at least 7 days before the exam date. During the exam, each student will be asked to orally present and discuss the portion of the project developed by their group.

Assessment Criteria

The written project and the presentation will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Level of planning and organization demonstrated in the project work;

• Relevance of objectives, content, structure, indicators, and the correct integration of scientific evidence supporting the chosen project;

• Conciseness, completeness, and effectiveness of the PowerPoint presentation.

Additional criteria for project evaluation include:

• Clarity and accuracy of exposition, relevance, and consistency of content;

• Organization of arguments, validity of statements, ability to reflect and rework the experience using the theoretical models learned;

• Appropriate use of the literature.

In the project presentation, the ability to argue, connect, and synthesize information clearly and comprehensively will also be considered.

Grading Scale

• 30–30L → Excellent execution of the project: coherent and relevant content, adherence to submission deadlines, comprehensive presentation of the work, excellent argumentative skills, and critical reworking.

• 25–29 → Complete execution of the project, relevant content, adherence to submission deadlines, adequate presentation of the project, good argumentative skills, and critical reworking.

• 20–24 → Correct overall execution of the project, sufficient presentation, adequate relevance to the chosen topic, satisfactory argumentative skills, and critical reworking.

• 18–19 → Sufficient execution of the project, presentation of main content, sufficient argumentative skills, and critical reworking.

• <18 → Project not completed according to the provided template, inadequate presentation of main content, insufficient critical reworking skills.

Teaching tools

PC and video projector for in-person lectures.
Internet access for consultation of thematic websites and scientific databases

Office hours

See the website of Monica Guberti