Calling All Midwives

We hope you have found our site inspiring. We would like to encourage other midwives to work in this way and spread our model of practice.

Many midwives and student midwives choose to spend some time with us, to shadow our work and learn our approach. Some of their comments are below. If you would like more information or support in establishing your own similar practice, please get in touch.

• I have learned that the way the Albany midwives practice is the way forward for all midwifery practices, the benefits to all their clients is evident every time we met them. The trust and joy the clients show towards the midwives and vice versa can only benefit the service.
  
• Continuity has a huge role to play in preserving normal birth and midwifery, not to mention home birth rates. Caseloading is possible and rewarding for both women and midwives.
  
• This placement has reinforced by beliefs that building relationships with women is key in supporting women to have a SVD.
  
• That I can do much more in my own practice in terms of advocacy, empowerment and involving women (and partners) more in their care. You inspired my faith further in the normality of childbirth.
  
• That women can labour and deliver with no pain relief at all - with midwives who are hands off, deliver in alternative positions and have physiological 3rd stages - wonderful!! I've also learned about the diversity of women we can be involved with.
  
• That primips can give birth without hands-on and directed pushing! Downward traction on head to 'deliver' the shoulders is NOT necessary (except a few occasions - 12lb 3oz babies maybe!) Continuity of carer is invaluable.
  
• I've learned how much I want to provide good midwifery care but realised how hard this is whilst working on a busy obstetric unit. That midwives can be nice and supportive! That I have not been providing true women-centred care/informed choice.
  
• I have just begun my first week back on Labour Ward and have already cared for two women, both with synto and epidurals, worries me that the Albany placement was a rare occurrence to observe true midwifery - have been brought back to reality with a bump!
  
• That midwifery care can actually be flexible to meet the needs of individual women, as well as midwives; that much of midwifery practice has flaws which can and should be challenged in order to facilitate the progress of the profession.
  
• To have been with the Albany midwives at the very end of my midwifery training was for me personally an extremely powerful experience. This placement has not only instilled in me a huge trust in the normality of childbirth, it has provided me with more confidence to start working from now onwards as a midwife on my own. I consider it as a great challenge to use in my own practice the knowledge and skills I obtained in my short placement. Thank you very much for all you taught me and for such a brilliant placement.