Midwives must ensure that postnatal care is not overlooked due to time constraints.

Birth and the subsequent transition to parenthood involve huge physical and emotional changes, which, if not monitored closely and managed well from the start, can lead to negative repercussions further along in the postnatal period. Knowledge about essential baby care and being able to carry out the fundamental aspects of postnatal care is important to parents, and midwives need to be available to provide this vital information.

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In this Postnatal Care Supplement, British Journal of Midwifery looks at key areas of this topic. These are just a few of the issues addressed in this supplement published by BJM:

• What is the purpose of a national clinical guideline?
• What do midwives have to do to implement the NICE guidelines and how will it benefit the women being cared for?
• What is the impact of intrapartum voiding on postnatal urinary and anal incontinence?
• How can midwives improve postnatal education for parents?
• Do postnatal clinics in the community offer better care to women and their babies?
• What are the mothers' perceptions of infant feeding support, and is this different between breastfeeding mothers and bottle-feeding mothers?

Do not miss out on this exclusive Postnatal Care Supplement brought to you by British Journal of Midwifery, the leading clinical journal for midwives. Published each month, the journal is written by midwives for midwives and peer reviewed by some of the foremost authorities in the profession. It contains the best clinical reviews, original research and evidence-based articles, ensuring that midwives are kept fully up-to-date with the latest developments taking place in clinical practice.