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Bachelor of Midwifery
Summary
This course is not available for international students except in limited cases.
Domestic Students
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Available at these campuses |
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Course Duration |
3 years full-time or equivalent part-time. | |
Deferment |
Deferment is available for two years. Find out more about deferment: Deferment Information | |
Delivery mode |
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Commencement date |
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Course Costs |
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Important Note on Fees |
All costs are based on current rates. A student's annual fee may vary in accordance with their choice of major and electives. The University reviews fees annually. | |
Credit Points |
240 |
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Applying for Admission |
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Domestic Students |
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Eligibility |
An applicant must also comply with the Admission Rules. Apply to relevant state Tertiary Admissions Centre. To be eligible for admission to the course, an applicant must have completed the following prerequisites at year 12 level, or equivalent. Queensland Victoria |
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How to Apply |
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Description
The aim of this course is to educate an individual to work as a competent midwife at a beginning level in any maternity setting according to the International Confederation of Midwives Definition of the Midwife (2005) and the Australian Nursing Midwifery Councils Competency Standards for the Midwife, (2006). Graduates will be eligible to apply for registration as a Division 1 Nurse with restriction to practise as a midwife in Victoria and authorised to practise as a midwife in Queensland.
Interdisciplinary Foundations
Health is viewed as a state of wellbeing in which the individual is seeking, or is directed toward, self-actualisation and complete development. At the same time it is recognised that the health of women and communities has been, and continues to be, influenced, by the environment. A social model of health does not reject the importance of science and pathogens as causes of disturbances in the efficient functioning of the body, but it does enlarge the landscape of causative factors.
Reproductive health care involves pre-conceptual care up to six weeks postpartum. Science, research, midwives and women combine to form a foundation of midwifery practice.
Midwifery Theory
The position of girls and women in society is an important determinant of their reproductive health status. All women require care in pregnancy and childbirth which is not only safe but also meets their individual psychological, emotional, physical and social needs, including spiritual needs. The midwife seeks to meet the holistic needs of the woman in a sensitive and competent manner, acting as her advocate and working in partnership with her and her family to promote a satisfying experience of childbirth and motherhood.
Fundamental to the professional practice of midwives is the professional ethos that underpins all that a midwife does and how he/she functions in society. The midwifes professional duty is to act at all times to ensure the wellbeing of the childbearing woman and her baby within the relevant legal and ethical standards of midwifery practice. Relationships with other health professionals exist that enable working with them in a collaborative manner. Midwifery includes information about current issues related to women, midwives, maternity care, health and the health care system.
Midwifery Practice
Competent midwifery practice is the combination of skills, knowledge, attitudes, values and abilities that underpin effective performance. The core set of midwifery skills include managing normal pregnancy and childbirth and providing effective postnatal maternal and newborn care. Other health professionals work with the midwife in an enabling maternity care environment for the management of obstetric and neonatal complications.
The midwife has the ability and skills to analyse and reflect on and about practice. This includes interpreting evidence as a basis to inform practice, policy, guidelines and decision-making. This implies an understanding about the way that knowledge and evidence are continuously created, applied and recreated. The development of critical self-awareness is essential to this reflective process and is a defining characteristic of a professional midwife.Contacts for Future Students
Domestic Students 
- Enquiries
- 1300 ASK ACU (1300 275 228)
- E-mail: futurestudents@acu.edu.au
