Mullingar Maternity Unit celebrates International Day of the Midwife

On Thursday May 5, midwives across the world will be celebrate International Day of the Midwife, and the progress in the speciality over the last 100 years.

Midwives play a vital role in providing high quality maternity care and feel privileged to be present with women at such life changing moments.

The maternity unit at Regional Hospital Mullingar (RHM) has a staff of more than 60 midwives, across various departments, who are dedicated in providing high quality care to women and their families.

In 2021 during the global pandemic, the team in RHM facilitated 1,985 births and a total of 1,955 mothers were supported throughout their childbirth experiences.

Caroline Earley, a candidate advanced midwife practitioner (cAMP) at Mullingar hospital, said: “I had always been interested in midwifery as a career, since my first encounter of birth during my nursing training.

“The autonomy of midwifery practice always appealed to me alongside the ever-evolving practice and focus to provide women and their families with high-quality woman-centred maternity care.”

Over the last two years, midwives in Mullingar hospital were required to adjust how they worked as Covid-19 presented obstacles that challenged them. They had to rethink how they supported pregnant women at a time when the public were advised they could not be in close physical proximity.

Furthermore, women were worried about their pregnancies, and the prospect of giving birth during the pandemic was a cause for concern and unease.

Caroline said: “As midwives, we adapted our practice for Covid. We used PPE and otther technology to our advantage, devising new ways to prepare women for childbirth.

“Despite the pandemic, a Midwife Led Supported Care Pathway in line with recommendations from the National Maternity strategy (2016), was established. As part of that, I meet women early in their pregnancy journeys and see them at each antenatal visit with seamless referral to the obstetric team if required.

“I also have opportunity to see some women during and following their birth providing emotional, social, physical and clinical support. This continuity of care promotes positive partnerships, and we get to know each other very well throughout the pregnancy journey.”

To support women through their childbirth experience with kindness, care, and compassion, the midwives in Mullingar are always looking at new and improved ways of developing services.

Also, during Covid staff were keen to celebrate and support each other. A consequence of that was Camilla Gammell being voted midwife of the year by her colleagues in December 2021. Camilla works tirelessly to provide high quality care to women attending the maternity unit at Mullingar hospital.

Midwives, in collaboration with obstetric colleagues, provide an extensive range of services at the unit including, Outpatients Antenatal Clinic (Mullingar), outreach Antenatal Clinic (Longford), Maternity Ultrasonography Service, Women’s Health Department (EPU/FAU), Antenatal, Intrapartum and Postnatal care, Bereavement Support Service, Perinatal Mental Health support, Lactation consultant support, Parent craft education, Specialised Diabetic support, and Special Care Baby Unit.