 PHARMACOLOGY FOR MIDWIVES:
THE EVIDENCE BASE FOR SAFE PRACTICE.
Sue Jordan (Ed)
Review by Jane Allnutt
The management and administration of pharmaceutical preparations play an increasing role in our every day care of women during pregnancy, labour and the postnatal period. With this in mind, it is essential that midwives have an understanding of how these pharmaceutical preparations work, their side-effects, their half-life and any specific contraindications or cautions associated with specific preparations. This book is a much needed and important resource to assist midwives in their understanding of these matters especially with the emphasis being placed on evidence based practice.
Written primarily for a United Kingdom audience, the majority of references given refer to the British National Formulary (BNF 2000) as a guide. This guide is easily obtained on the net and information provided by this committee is mostly relevant to the pharmaceutical situation in Australia.
This book is a paperback consisting of 477 pages and divided into 6 parts. Scattered throughout the book, in boxed tables, are implications that provide links between pharmacology and clinical practice. In particular, these tables look at key areas to assist in the identification of problems and how to manage them. Also throughout the book, evidence based practice points appear when applied specifically to the area as well as case reports that demonstrate where pharmacology could have been applied to influence outcomes. The set-up, placement and expression used in these sections plays an important part in helping to remember specifics about individual drugs.
The parts/chapters follow in orderly and clear sequence. The first part introduces the reader to the principles of pharmacology, discusses the evidence base for pharmacological interventions and the basic principles involving drug therapy. This part also has a specific section on IV therapy and legal aspects of drug administration, both containing essential information for the midwife. The information presented can easily be applied to an Australian setting. Each chapter provides additional references. There is a more comprehensive reading list in the appendix. Most of the list is easily accessible to the Australian public.
Key areas covered in the book include pain relief in labour, antiemetics, drugs that increase and decrease uterine activity, commonly prescribed drugs in pregnancy, pharmacological interventions for specific medical and obstetric conditions. The final chapter is dedicated to an area often forgotten in pharmacology, over the counter drugs.
The appendices are extremely useful as there is a quick reference, US classifications of drug safety and extensive glossary and as previously mentioned the additional reference list. I found Appendix 1 particularly helpful in providing a quick reference for major drugs presented in an alphabetical listing. Standard headings under each major drug include: uses; side-effects; cautions/contraindications; and interactions.
There are few books that specifically provide current pharmacological information for Midwives. Pharmacology for Midwives is therefore an extremely useful resource. I found this book easy to read. The explanations given are clear, concise and mostly evidenced based. I have no hesitation in recommending this book as an excellent resource that provides the evidence base for safe pharmacological practice in midwifery.
Jane Allnutt
Midwifery Lecturer Faculty of Nursing,
University of Sydney.
Birth Issues 2003;12(1/2):45
Available from CAPERS - buy
this book now
Back to Reviews
|
