A qualified midwife can not only provide families with essential care for natural childbirth but also act as a problem finder for women with high-risk pregnancies and make appropriate referrals. A midwife will also provide the community with correct maternal and childcare information, ultimately reducing medical costs. Due to social changes in Taiwan, the requirement of the public for high-quality medical care has increased. The reduced willingness of licensed obstetricians to deliver babies and the high rate of cesarean sections in Taiwan makes it necessary to train high-level midwives.

      In response to these societal needs and the development of the university, the National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences (NTUNHS) was approved to establish the only nursing and midwifery research institute in Taiwan during the 2000 academic year. Since then, the institute has enrolled about 10 students per year in its master's degree nursing and midwifery program. To cultivate more clinical skills in midwifery practices, NTUNHS established the Department of Midwifery and Women's Health in August 2016 and added an undergraduate program. The department was then merged with the graduate institute and renamed the Department of Midwifery and Women's Healthcare. In August 2018, the Ministry of Education approved the department's change of name to the Department of Nurse-Midwifery and Women's Health, which offers both undergraduate and master's degree programs.

Brief introduction

Undergraduate Program

      The undergraduate program is characterized by its solid and complete professional midwifery training, which emphasizes both the theory and practice of midwifery, as well as the development of practical skills. The curriculum is designed with gender mainstreaming at its core, with gender awareness and women-centered concepts in mind. In addition, the learning content includes the female life cycle, from adolescence, pregnancy, and adulthood, to menopause, to cultivate midwifery and women's healthcare skills in response to clinical and community needs.

      The master's degree program aims to cultivate advanced midwifery skills in clinical education and research. Building on students’ midwifery skills and education attained prior to enrollment, this program cultivates the continued development of their scientific research, leadership management, and educational capabilities. The curriculum emphasizes innovation and research methods, combines the development of midwifery knowledge of theory and practice, and focuses on increasing the knowledge of midwifery practices, policies, and education to enhance global perspectives and leadership skills and promote the professional development of midwifery.

Education goals

Learning objectives Core competentemies

Undergraduate Program

    The educational objective of the Department of Nurse-Midwifery and Women’s Health is “to cultivate women’s healthcare professionals with midwifery expertise, health education skills, and gender awareness.” Students are nurtured to equip them with healthcare and midwifery skills so that they can care for women at various stages of life, including adolescence, the childbearing years, adulthood, and menopause. Students are also expected to become professionals with the qualities of caring, dedication, and congeniality, who can operate in the following roles: midwives who provide community-based education and care for pregnancy, childbirth, and infertility; professional counselors; healthcare service personnel and managers in postpartum care institutions; specialists in home convalesce following childbirth who can also provide breastfeeding counseling; and menopausal care professionals. The graduates of this program are expected to possess professional knowledge, gender awareness, and critical thinking skills, enabling them to provide care for pregnant women, new mothers, and women in general and demonstrate the following:

    1. Caring behavior

    2. Knowledge and skills in communication, collaboration, and management

    3. Lifelong learning action

    4. Knowledge and skills in cross-cultural care

    5. The necessary competence to enroll for a Master’s-level program.

Graduate Program

The educational goal of the master’s degree program is “to cultivate advanced midwifery professional and nursing skills” and develop the capabilities of advanced professional midwives by fostering practical, academic, and administrative leadership in the maternal and child health fields and cultivating ethical literacy, respect, and caring attitudes toward life. The curriculum therefore emphasizes continuous support for students’ development in professional ethics, caring, professional autonomy, lifelong learning, global perspectives, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking. It also strengthens the development of students’ independent judgment, research skills, empirical application, and management leadership in the healthcare field. The program nurtures students and expects them to:

    1. Demonstrate evidence-based professional competence in nursing and midwifery.

    2. Collaborate and communicate effectively with teams providing healthcare for mothers, newborns, and their families.

    3. Use technology, resources, and innovation to improve nursing and midwifery practices.

    4. Participate in services, research, and teaching related to maternal and infant health.

    5. Promote the development of the nursing and midwifery profession, self-growth, and lifelong learning.

    6. Demonstrate an ethical and caring attitude.

Cultivating Students "Core Competencies

Developmental Focus and Vision

        The university’s vision is to “move towards a high-quality university of science and technology with excellent educational achievements in healthcare and management, and to promote the health and wellbeing of the nation.” The developmental goal is to build a university of science and technology with the core value of healthcare; cultivate professionals in the field of health sciences and technology who meet the needs of the nation and society; strengthen the general education in humane literacy, humanitarian spirit, and global outlook; nurture healthcare and management professionals with moral integrity and reliable personality; and develop an international perspective to enhance knowledge and practices in domestic healthcare and management.

        Echoing the university’s developmental vision and the departmental goal of cultivating frontline and advanced midwifery professionals, this department adopts the strategy of strengthening teaching resources, teaching quality, faculty development, and departmental operations to ensure that the emphasis of the undergraduate program is on nurturing students so that they possess the core competencies of maternal and women’s healthcare, critical thinking, teamwork skills, communication and management, humane care, cross-cultural care, information application skills, and lifelong learning. Furthermore, in the master’s program, the department not only cultivates respect for life and ethical literacy, but also cultivates the skills of independent judgment, research and development, and leadership and management knowledge in midwifery. This department inherits the university’s previous achievements in midwifery education and goals of sustainable development:

    1. Actively develop and implement competency-based curricula, focusing on the improvement of practical skills.

    2. Actively set up diversified courses and emphasize the development of professional roles.

    3. Actively promote collaboration with industries and encourage physical creation.

    4. Enhance global perspectives and international exchange programs.

    5. Assist faculties in developing professional, teaching, research, and service competencies.

Career Paths and Development

Teaching Curriculum that Integrates Theory and Practice

    1. Overseas internship visits: To equip students with international midwifery experience and skills, international internships are arranged, allowing students to go to overseas institutions for midwifery clinical practice or visits and ensuring their skills are in line with the international  midwifery professional practices.

    2. Keynote presentations: Well-known domestic and international academic experts in the field of midwifery are invited to conduct practical training and give presentations to impart new knowledge in midwifery practices and empirical research.

    3. Certification: Certification-related teaching content is integrated into courses, and students are guided to obtain midwifery certificates.

Faculty and Eequipment

        The full-time and jointly appointed teaching staff in this department are highly respected in domestic academia and industry. Their expertise is mainly in fields such as obstetric nursing, midwifery, and high-risk pregnancy nursing, and they have practical experience and connections with the research community, undergo industry–university collaboration, and provide professional services. The part-time teaching staff are experts with rich experience in clinical obstetrics and technical practice. To enhance students’ professional midwifery knowledge and skills, the professional classrooms of the department provide all necessary software and hardware, teaching aids, models, and books, allowing the students to study, practice, and engage in academic research.