Articles and resources relating to vitamin K for newborn babies. By Sara Wickham, a midwife, researcher and author who has written extensively on this.
Vitamin K Resources
Eight things I’d like to share with midwifery students who care…
Sara Wickham offers some words of support and advice for the midwifery student – aspiring, new or experienced – to take on their journey.
What is a stretch and sweep?
Many women are offered a ‘stretch and sweep’ in late pregnancy. But what is this, why and how is it done, does it work and can you say no?
Upright positions in labour – the benefits
Sara Wickham offers practice suggestions of ways of promoting active birth by moving away from the delivery bed as a place on which to give birth.
Cochrane’s aphorism, an important bit of wisdom
How to cancel a labour induction?
Dr Sara Wickham discusses how to cancel labour induction. And where to get more information if you need it before making your decision.
What’s true, pussycat?
Sara Wickham riffs about cats at birth, cats in maternity care and just how much we can learn by being open to other ways of knowing.
Five tips for seasonal self-care
Sara Wickham offers tips on holiday self-care and an invitation to think about how you’re going to care for yourself over the festive season.
Plus size pregnancy: why weight stigma matters
Weight stigma is a pervasive and problematic issue in our modern culture. It can negatively affect the experience and wellbeing of anyone who has a higher BMI. But its impact in health and maternity care can be particularly harmful. For…
Fetal monitoring research resources
A list of fetal monitoring research resources available on www.sarawickham.com. Includes blog posts and references to relevant research.
Vitamin K, persuasion tactics, and tips
Heavy-handed persuasion tactics and the aggressive language of some medically-focused papers are inappropriate and harmful, says Sara Wickham
Nine things you might not know about Anti-D…
Over the years, I’ve become aware that there are a few things that people are sometimes surprised to learn when I speak about Anti-D. Or, as it is known in the USA and some other countries, RhoGAM. I made sure to…
Explaining the induction postcode lottery
Dr Sara Wickham looks at research which explains the “induction postcode lottery” and shows how there’s not always good evidence behind the recommendation.
Objectivity, bias and belief…
No-one is unbiased. Context is important. Knowing the context of information can help us better make the decisions that are right for us.
What’s Right For You? Resources for birth decisions
Need help making birth decisions? One of Sara’s most loved books is called What’s Right For Me? Making decision in pregnancy and childbirth. It has been helping parents to become familiar with their options and learn about tools to help…
How to save 40,000 women a year from having unnecessary Anti-D / RhoGAM
How many women receive unnecessary anti-D? Sara Wickham looks at some of the issues concerning antenatal anti-D and fetal blood testing.
How to buy Sara Wickham books worldwide: top tips
A few weeks ago, after we sent our email about my Anti-D (RhoGAM) resources and book, we received a lovely email from Emma. We’re quoting Emma’s words with her full knowledge and consent, of course, because consent is VERY important to us.…
Plus Size Pregnancy Resources
This post is a collection of links to articles and plus size pregnancy resources on this website. I’m a researcher, and author of the book Plus Size Pregnancy: what the evidence really says about higher BMI and birth. And I…
Holiday time, and a self-care reminder
Pinard Wisdom
How do you use a pinard? Sara Wickham and other experienced midwives offer tips, tricks and suggestions for those wanting to develop this skill.
Let’s be clear: labour onset is either spontaneous OR induced!
It’s important to be clear that labour is either spontaneous or induced. And to understand what those terms mean. Sara Wickham explains.
Perineal care bundles
Over the past few years, several countries have introduced packages of interventions known as ‘perineal care bundles.’ These bundles are groups of interventions which policymakers hope will address the rising rates of anal sphincter injury (severe tears to the perineum…
Sterile water injections: what’s the evidence?
A 2009 article in which Sara Wickham looked at the evidence and the issues relating to the use of sterile water blocks in labour.
Six things you need to know if you’re plus size and pregnant
Are you plus size and pregnant? You deserve to have respectful care, good information, and choices for your birth. Professionals and birth workers should support you in finding and evaluating your options so you can decide what’s right for you.…
Group B Strep and Chlorhexidine
Dr Sara Wickham looks at chlorhexidine and GBS, considering the evidence and possible risks but also the context in which women turn to it.
Seven reasons to question headlines about the benefits of epidural
In 2024, a study about the benefits of epidural analgesia was published in the British Medical Journal. It was discussed in an editorial, and was also highlighted by the mass media. The study (Kearns et al 2024) was about epidural…
The bumpiness of the playing field…
In what state does a baby need to be born by caesarean in order for us to question whether it was necessary, asks Sara Wickham.
Who’s most likely to get an inaccurate due date?
Who is most likely to see a discrepancy between their own due date (by the date of their last period) and that calculated through ultrasound scanning?
How to spot signs of infection in babies
A tool to help parents learn to identify signs of infection in babies. Dr Sara Wickham’s colourful graphic shows what we need to look out for.
Anti-D information: getting started
Many people visit this website looking for Anti-D information. Anti-D is the name of a medicine made from blood that is offered to rhesus negative women who may have been exposed to rhesus positive blood. It’s known as RhoGAM® in…
A seasonal story about chicks, pants and common sense…
Learning from the hen house: Sara Wickham’s seasonal story about chicks, pants and common-sense wisdom.
Books I have known and loved…
I love books. And I love to tell you about books written by other people that I think are worth reading. This blog post contains many of the book reviews that I have written over the years, details of books that…
Why it’s illogical to deny ‘at risk’ women access to midwifery-led units
Why are so-called ‘at risk’ women denied access to the very places that could help reduce the chance of adverse events?
The induction crisis continues
Ten things I wish every woman knew about induction of labour
The most important things you need to know before deciding whether or not to have an induction of labour. There are pros and cons and no ‘right’ way.
Seven things every parent needs to know about vitamin K
Dr Sara Wickham, author of Vitamin K and the Newborn, shares information about vitamin K. Seven things every parent needs to know before making a decision.
Induction and ethnicity: what is the evidence?
For the past few years, a series of guideline developments, audit findings, and research studies have led to a number of clinicians and professional bodies arguing that induction of labour at 39 weeks could be justifiably recommended to Black, Asian…
Who is most at risk of caesarean section?
Who is most at risk of caesarean? Sara Wickham looks at research which highlights women who may need particular protection from unnecessary surgery.
Induction of labour and larger women
Sara Wickham looks at research which has analysed the consequences of induction of labour for larger women.
Home-made birth hearts recipe…
Sara Wickham shares her ‘recipe’ for home-made birth hearts. Can be a childbirth education activity, or just something nice to do for yourself or a friend.
What is a labour plateau?
A labour plateau is a phrase used to describe a pause or slowdown in labour. The labour plateau is a phenomenon with which I am very familiar. As a midwife, I attended mostly physiological births, where it is common to…
Birth outcomes in plus size pregnancy
Dr Sara Wickham looks at research which challenges what we’re being told about birth outcomes and plus size pregnancy.
Labour progress myths: why size and age may not be the problem
Dr Sara Wickham looks at labour progress myths, and why maternal size and age are sometimes unfairly blamed
Is it any wonder? Enough of the body shaming…
Enough of the body shaming, says Sara Wickham. Is it any wonder that many women don’t know how to trust their bodies or decisions?
Would you like me to email you a relevant, reliable, regular update?
Get regular, reliable, free monthly email updates on birth-related research and thinking from Sara Wickham.
The importance of consent: rant, rinse, repeat…
Sara Wickham looks at the concept of risk assessment in pregnancy and childbirth and asks why women aren’t being asked to consent to this.
Women with higher BMI: it doesn’t have to be complicated!
A lot has been written over the past few years about the risks posed to women with higher BMI than average. In fact, this has become such a significant issue that I have written a book on this topic. And,…
Plus Size Pregnancy book now available!
Dr Sara Wickham’s ‘Plus Size Pregnancy’ book is now available! Have you been told that your pregnancy is high risk simply because you have a higher BMI? Have you been advised that you need extra tests and interventions, or that…
Ten ways I can help midwifery students
Sara Wickham offers a variety of resources for student midwives and others studying birth-related areas.
Seven useful words for the birth room…
Sara Wickham offers some useful words for the birth room; a handy phrase which helps prevent women from being coerced…
Four vitamin K myths – and the truth
Dr Sara Wickham shares and unpacks four commonly-seen vitamin K myths, explaining why some information sources have got it wrong.
Post-term pregnancy and induction of labour resources
This page lists all the resources available from Dr Sara Wickham on the topics of post-term pregnancy and induction of labour.
What does “at risk of needing a caesarean” actually mean?
What do we really mean when we say that someone is ‘at risk of’ or ‘in need of’ something? Not always what those words imply.
Shared decision making
The term ‘shared decision making’ implies that the practitioner gets a say in what the person decides, and that’s not quite right…
The Albany Midwifery Practice
A book about the Albany Midwifery Practice has been published, and here’s why it’s important…
Word-thought for the day: replacing risk with chance
Oxytocin and birth: the latest evidence
The latest evidence on oxytocin and birth: Dr Sara Wickham looks at recent key studies on this topic.
The Rhombus of Michaelis
Sara Wickham and Jean Sutton describe the Rhombus of Michaelis, an area of bone which plays an important role in labour and birth.
Deciding to decline, or deciding to wait and see?
Sara Wickham considers issues around the language we use to discuss birth decisions, and highlights nuances in what people are actually asking for.
The theoretical risk of water embolism
Dr Sara Wickham explains how the theoretical risk of water embolism came about, and why it’s not a risk at all.