Working in midwifery

Jade Rankine (above left with newly qualified midwife Lucy Pankhurst) tells us about working in the maternity department at Queen Elizabeth Hospital

“I qualified as a midwife in 2012 – I trained at the University of Greenwich and Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH). After that I worked in Australia for a few months, which was a great experience, but I missed south east London and had to come back! I was born and brought up in the area, so QEH feels like home to me.

“Before I started in midwifery I didn’t know much about it but I knew I wanted to be involved. The first time I observed a birth I was really nervous but seeing mum and dad with their new baby just made my nerves disappear. Every woman’s experience is different, and every baby is special.

 “My role is to support newly qualified midwives throughout their first year, although I’m still a working midwife and still deliver babies. I observe the newly qualified midwives and help them develop their skills. I also go along to the University of Greenwich one day a week to assist with teaching practical skills.

“Midwifery is very advanced in the UK. We are advocates for women and put them at the centre of care. We have midwife-led birth centres at both hospitals (QEH and University Hospital Lewisham), where women with uncomplicated pregnancies can have as natural a birth as possible, and the feedback we get is really positive.

 “I really do enjoy my job, and this is such a friendly place to work. Everyone is very supportive – there’s always someone I can go to for advice – and I’ve been able to go on lots of training courses to progress in my career. With midwifery there are lots of different avenues you can go down – it’s an ever evolving area.”