Midwifery Sister, Emergency Obstetric Unit

Job/Role Summary

I am the Midwifery Sister in an Emergency Obstetric Unit – an admissions, emergency assessment and day care unit in a maternity unit.

Specific qualifications and experience required

Need to be a registered midwife with over 5 years experience at Band 6.

Career Milestones

1987 BSc (Hons) Nursing Science and RN

1990 Registered Midwife

2005 appointed band 7 Midwifery Sister in a Consultant-led Maternity Unit

2012 appointed manager and team leader in an Emergency Obstetric Unit

What attracted you to this job?

I wanted to work in a caring profession and when I was a student nurse I liked the autonomy of the midwifery profession.

Enjoyable aspects of the job/role

It is always a joy and a privilege to support women during pregnancy and birth. I take great pride in doing my job well and supporting the members of my team.

Sometimes in midwifery you can be involved in challenging and sad situations and it is just as important to support families at times of loss and grief as well as in joyous occasions.

Challenging aspects of the job/role

Managing staff.

Supporting staff.

Managing capacity issues.

Meeting the ever increasing demands the public have of health care services with limited resources.

Finding time to fulfill my administrative responsibilities whilst providing safe and effective care.

Important success factors

Delivering a quality service and maintaining safe and effective care for women, their babies and their families.

Constantly modifying service provision in accordance with best practice and an evolving evidence base.

Advice for those considering the type of job/role?

Be prepared to work long unsocial hours – do not expect to always finish work exactly on time as sometimes you want to provide continuity of care for the woman or complete your care. Midwifery is not a job, it is a vocation and financial reward never seems to be sufficient for the responsibility we have. However, it is a hugely rewarding job; there is really nothing more special than supporting women to bring new life into the world and if we can help make that experience the very best it can be for a woman we have done a very important job well.

Key skills that can be gained within this job/role?

A lifetime of working with women, families, managing staff. To be a good midwife you need to be an active listener and always want to expand your knowledge base and change your practice in light of new findings.

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