ACONHP Faculty Co-Author New Edition of Leading Maternal and Child Health Nursing Textbook
May. 14, 2026
Michelle R. Eubanks , UNA, at meubanks@una.edu, 256.765.4392
FLORENCE, AL – Two University of North Alabama Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions faculty, Dr. Melissa DeFoor and Dr. Amanda Hitt, alongside JoAnne Silbert-Flagg, have authored The Maternal & Child Health Nursing: Care of the Childbearing & Childrearing Family, 10th Edition, set to publish in June by Wolters Kluwer. This widely recognized textbook provides a comprehensive, family-centered approach to maternal and pediatric nursing care.
“As faculty, we wrote this book with our students in mind, creating a resource that not only builds knowledge but also strengthens the clinical judgment and confidence they need to care for families,” said Dr. Hitt, ACONHP Assistant Professor of Nursing. “This text was designed to bridge the gap between the classroom and the bedside, helping students translate what they learn into safe, compassionate care for mother, children, and families.”
DeFoor and Hitt serve as new lead authors for this edition, bringing current clinical expertise and innovative teaching strategies to support student learning and faculty instruction. Notable elements of the text include a strong emphasis on person-centered care, cultural awareness, and expanded content related to genetics and its role in maternal and child health outcomes.
The textbook reflects a modern, integrated perspective by presenting maternity and pediatric nursing as a continuum of care. Rather than approaching these areas as separate disciplines, the text emphasizes the interconnected experiences of childbearing and childrearing families, preparing nursing students to deliver holistic, coordinated care across settings.
This publication highlights the ACONHP’s ongoing commitment to advancing nursing education through faculty scholarship, innovation, and leadership in preparing the next generation of nurses.
“This text reflects the understanding that maternal and child health is a continuous journey, not separate moments in care,” said Dr. DeFoor, ACONHP Assistant Department Chair and Assistant Professor of Nursing. “It is dedicated to those who inspire this work every day and to the next generation of nurses who will carry its purpose forward.”
About The University of North Alabama
The University of North Alabama is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs through the colleges of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering; the Sanders College of Business and Technology; the Spencer College of Education and Human Sciences; and the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions. Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. UNA Athletics, a renowned collegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of NCAA Division I as part of the Atlantic Sun and United Athletic conferences. The University of North Alabama is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age, or national origin. For more: una.edu and una.edu/unaworks/.