Most of us have met midwives at some point in our lives; we simply don’t remember them! Young families rely on midwives to not only help deliver healthy babies, but also to help promote healthy living standards for Moms and Dads to live by.
Crucially, the work of a midwife could make all the difference in a baby’s — and Mom’s — survival. Childbirth is painful, stressful and exhausting. Therefore, new moms thrive when talented, caring midwives are on hand to help them bring new lives into the world.
Let’s take a look at some reasons why the healthcare community relies on talented midwives — now, and forever.
It’s a timeless role
The role of a midwife has, in many ways, barely changed since the dawn of modern medicine. They’re on hand to help mothers pace themselves through pregnancy and birth and to support their mental and physical health.
To that end, midwives will always be in demand. They’re specialists in taking care of women who are due to give birth. While no two expectant mothers will ever be the same, they know the right things to say and do to help guide them through a safe pregnancy and a healthy delivery.
Therefore, qualified midwives will always have the tools and expertise they need to comfort and assure women as they head toward their due dates. While technology and societal expectations may change, the role of the midwife will stay largely the same.
They’re psychological allies
There’s not only incredible physical stress that women endure during pregnancy, but also psychological concerns, too. Hormone levels, physical ailments and concerns about appearance all can have huge cumulative effects for women who are about to give birth.
Midwives, therefore, are crucial allies in helping expectant mothers safely navigate all nine months of their pregnancy. They can help mothers to understand what’s happening to their bodies and can recommend techniques to help ease any stress and anxiety.
Talented, qualified midwives also help women to understand ‘what comes next’. First-time mothers can find pregnancy extremely frightening. As such, we rely on midwives to help lay out roadmaps that first-time moms can follow to better their mental health.
They help women raise their voices
Many women can struggle to raise concerns and worries during pregnancy. This may be especially true for first-time mothers, who may be willing to assume that what they’re going through is just ‘part of the process’. Again, no two pregnancies are ever the same.
Midwives, therefore, give pregnant women the opportunity to explain and express what they’re going through without fear of reproach. Midwifery is, naturally, a female-first role — and the relationship between a midwife and an expectant mother is one that’s built on trust and guidance.
Women who may be worried about giving birth early or any side effects they may be experiencing during their later trimesters should feel free to explore any emotions, worries and physical problems with their midwives in complete ease.
Midwives are credits to any healthcare community because they’re always on site to help women and their babies come through an extremely stressful — yet exciting — time in their lives.
They have a wealth of knowledge
Midwives are some of the most knowledgeable specialists you’ll find in any clinic or hospital setting. Whether they learn skills through online nurse midwifery programs (such as via Baylor University) or in-house at a healthcare provider of their choice, a qualified midwife will have a range of skills that are infinitely transferable — and always relied upon.
For example, midwives don’t just need to know how to help women through the process of birth. They need to learn about the different stages of pregnancy, how they can vary for different women and how to approach specific physical symptoms that may arise.
Midwives also need to know how to measure babies while in utero to ensure they’re healthy and which avenues and options are available to women who may need support at each stage of their pregnancy.
Midwives also need to learn soft skills — interpersonal communication, reassurance skills and more — so that the women in their charge can feel more comfortable as they approach the end of their final trimesters.
Midwives are tireless
As mentioned, there will always be a need for a skilled midwife. While healthcare technology and medicine will evolve, there will always be women giving birth — and for this reason, midwives need to always be on call, on their feet and ready to help.
Skilled midwives are not always required in static hospital settings, either. Many midwives are on call to visit pregnant women at home and to attend to births taking place outside of hospital and clinic settings. Some women, for example, may choose a water birth over a traditional clinic setup, which means a midwife will need to be on hand to help ease them through the process.
Midwives will also have to endure high emotions on both ends of the scale. Giving birth can be joyous, but, in the event of a complication or worse, a talented midwife must be ready to act as emotional and psychological support and always ready to act in a crisis.
As a result, midwives are perhaps some of the most emotionally resilient people working in modern healthcare today. It’s a role that requires incredible passion, dedication and willingness to help women through some of the most difficult, yet joyous, periods of their lives.
The world needs midwives
There are specialists for all stages of human life — from child education specialists to careers to help the elderly — we all rely on nurses and medical practitioners to help us through psychological and physical challenges. However, life starts with the hard work of a talented midwife, which is why hospitals and medical centers all over the world will always need their support and passion.
Whether studying online or in-person at a hospital, midwifery has never been easier to get into, and the world is crying out for caring professionals who can help bring happy and healthy babies into the world.
