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HSE encouraging midwifery as a career

The HSE is encouraging anyone thinking about their future career, or even a new career, to think about midwifery. Find out more from midwives across the country in our videos linked below.

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A midwife is central to preparing women and their families for the delivery their new baby and is a vital presence during all stage of a woman’s pregnancy, labour and the early postnatal period.  As a career, midwifery is diverse and progressive, with options available in clinical, management, education and research roles. Throughout their training, midwives can gain experience and skills across different specialist areas, such as gynaecology, neonatal, theatre and even home births.

As Clinical Midwifery Manager, Vicky Byrne, explains: “If you qualify as a midwife, it’s not just about delivering babies, there are so many specialities you can go down”- Watch Vicky’s video here.

Whatever pathway is taken, there are endless opportunities for midwives to learn and build their skills in a rewarding and joyful career. Our health system needs more midwives and there are many courses and job opportunities available in hospitals and communities across the country. While many midwives started their career as a nurse and then chose the path of midwifery, students starting off today can specialise from the start and choose to study and train as a midwife.

Angela Dunne, Director of  Midwifery for the National Women and Infants Health Programme said: “The profession of midwifery has led and driven significant changes in our maternity services in response to the National Maternity Strategy. Midwives provide care and support to women and their families while pregnant, throughout birth and during the period after a baby birth. Midwifery services are increasingly moving from the hospital to the community. There are now many opportunities for midwives to develop their career as the role of midwifes continue to expand, these include clinical specialist roles and advanced midwifery specialist roles. Midwifery as a career is very rewarding, dynamic and self-fulfilling and we would encourage students thinking about their career options to consider midwifery.”

Kilkenny’s Advanced Midwife Practitioner and INMO Midwife of the Year 2020, Clare Kennedy, says she would wholeheartedly support any person thinking of becoming a midwife. She said: “I think it is a wonderful profession.  I enjoy coming to work every morning and the personal satisfaction from knowing you have helped and supported a mum, a dad and a baby is second to none.” – Watch Clare’s video here.

Likewise, Donna McNamee, a Midwife in the National Maternity Hospital in Holles Street Dublin says: “Every single journey we have with a mum and a dad is just so special and it is a privilege to be there to deliver a baby. They may not remember my name, but they will remember how I made them feel on that day and that is a very special privilege I have” – Watch Donna’s video here.

Rachel Kenna, Chief Nursing Officer, Department of Health, explains that following the publication of the National Maternity Strategy in 2016, there has been a sustained focus on the improvement of maternity services in this country.  She said: “The Strategy seeks to change the way we deliver maternity services, making them woman-centred and with the key theme that midwives are at the heart of how maternity care is experienced by women at a very important time in their lives. Midwifery is central to high-quality maternity care and midwives have embraced the opportunity to implement the new model of maternity care. Their hard work is ensuring that more women in our maternity services can now avail of a wider choice of pregnancy and birthing experiences.  Over the coming years, we will see continued developments in midwifery services, so if ever there was a good time to consider Midwifery as a career I would say now is that time.”

Dawn Johnston, Director of Midwifery at the National Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, added: “We are seeing many developments in maternity services to ensure women and their families receive the right care, by the right person at the right time in the right place. With many opportunities to gain valuable experience wherever you decide to practice, I believe there has never been a better time to be a midwife in Ireland”.

Courses

More information on courses and education opportunities see www.nmbi.ie/education.

Or visit the following websites: 

 

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