While the organisation of work in maternity care has historically witnessed boundary work between midwives and obstetricians, modern service provision has posed many challenges to professional boundary work, with increasing litigation and risk management practices fuelling the social construction of a ‘risk discourse’ within maternity care. Drawing upon observational and interview data of an ethnographic study conducted in a UK obstetric-led maternity unit during 2013, this article explores the professional experiences of contemporary ‘risk work’ and the impact of such ‘risk work’ upon the professional role boundaries of obstetricians and midwives. Midwives and obstetricians expressed concern regarding risk in childbirth. Obstetricians and midwives perceived control over the childbirth process as a means of promoting risk minimisation, so that risk management was central to the perceived rational management of uncertainty in maternity care. Anxiety over uncertainty, error and blame was associated with dominance of the biomedical model of care in translating and managing risk and a perceived increase in the medicalisation of childbirth. Such ‘risk discourse’ had consequently provoked boundary work tension, with the perceived shifting of professional role boundaries of obstetricians and midwives within maternity care. As a consequence of contemporary risk work and reconfiguration of role boundaries, the role of the midwife in the twenty-first century was perceived to be in a state of flux. I note that contemporary risk work and the reconfiguration of professional boundaries in maternity services potentially places the midwifery profession ‘at risk’ of deprofessionalisation, raising concerns for the future role and professional status of midwives.

尽管生育服务工作的组织历史上见证了助产士和妇产科医生之间的边界工作，但现代服务的提供给专业边界工作带来了许多挑战，诉讼和风险管理实践的增加推动了孕产保健领域“风险话语”的社会建构。 。本文基于2013年在英国妇产科领导的妇产科进行的人种学研究的观察和访谈数据，探讨了当代“风险工作”的专业经验以及此类“风险工作”对产科医生职业角色边界的影响和助产士。助产士和妇产科医生对分娩风险表示关注。妇产科医生和助产士认为对分娩过程的控制是促进将风险最小化的一种手段，因此，风险管理对于合理地控制孕产保健不确定性至关重要。对不确定性，错误和责备的焦虑与生物医学护理模式在翻译和管理风险以及控制分娩医疗方面的主导地位有关。因此，这种“风险话语”激起了边界工作的紧张气氛，使产妇和助产士的专业角色边界在产妇保健中发生了转移。由于现代风险工作和角色边界的重新配置，人们认为助产士在二十一世纪的角色处于不断变化的状态。我注意到，当代的风险工作和妇产科服务专业领域的重新配置可能会使助产士职业面临“去职业化”的“风险”，