The 5th of May is International Day of the Midwife and the UK should be supporting midwives and other maternity professionals more so now than ever before. Why? Because there is currently a baby boom, a shortage of 5,000 midwives and the UK has one of the worst stillbirth rates in the developed world according to the 2011 Lancet report.

Sadly 15 million babies are born before 37 weeks resulting in 1.1 million babies dying every year around the globe. The staggering fact is that reports show around 75% of these deaths could be prevented with better health education and medical care.

Sadly 17 babies are stillborn or die shortly after birth in the UK every DAY, which equates to 6,500 each year.

Babies born as little two or three weeks before their 'due date' have a higher risk of health problems, such as asthma, according to new research. ...

Children born a few weeks early are significantly more likely to suffer behavioural and/or emotional problems before they start school, researchers ha...