Midwife
The job of a midwife
Midwifery is a medical profession whose roots stem from Old English etymology for “with the woman” (“mid”, meaning “with”, and “wif” for “woman”). The midwife guarantees the quality of the hospital stay and oversees the safety of the care of the “parent-child” couple. As such, the midwife plays a key role in monitoring and supporting families during their stay in one of Elsan’s 35 maternity units.
The midwife is the specialist in normal pregnancies, monitoring such from the announcement of the pregnancy up to the birth. The midwife’s role is to provide medical follow-up, monitor the pregnancy, prescribe any necessary tests, reassure and advise the future parents during the pregnancy and prepare them for the birth itself. During labour, the midwife may work as part of the obstetrics team, in collaboration with the gynaecologist-obstetrician, the obstetrician-surgeon, the anaesthetist, other midwives, nurses and the maternity team. The midwife autonomously ensures the monitoring of labour and delivery, guaranteeing the quality and safety of care so that the birth takes place under optimal conditions. The midwife then performs postnatal care duties and monitors the health of the baby and the mother for two hours after birth, in the delivery room.
Parenthood is a learning experience, and the midwife thus continues to play a role after the birth. They provide gentle support to parents, teaching them how to look after and bottle feed or breastfeed their new-born themselves.
Midwifery is a multi-faceted medical profession, governed by a code of ethics that defines the scope of competence required. The midwife plays a part in women’s lives from puberty onwards, carrying out, for example, preventative gynaecological consultations and prescribing contraception in the absence of an underlying pathology. The midwife also conducts perineum and sphincter re-education sessions, monitors the infant’s health during the first six months and vaccinates women and new-borns under certain conditions. In addition, the midwife plays an important informative and preventative role in dealing with addictions, particularly tobacco consumption.
Furthermore, midwifery offers the opportunity to access specialisations in several other fields, including obstetric ultrasound, acupuncture, osteopathy or even research.
What skills are required?
Beyond the obvious obstetrical skills acquired during training, becoming a midwife requires demonstrating genuine human and interpersonal qualities to support parents during a time of questioning, discovery and anxiety, sometimes up until the moment of birth. Therefore, it is considered to be more a vocation than a profession. Providing support also necessitates demonstrating real pedagogical talent. In addition, since labour can be long and difficult, being a midwife means being able to resist, both physically and mentally.
Materniteam: Elsan maternity unit’s personalised care programme
To complete the follow-up care provided by the maternity team as a whole, Elsan has developed Materniteam – personalised support for future parents and young parents. This 100% free programme includes useful advice, a mobile application and a customised itinerary enabling the couple to visit the maternity unit and take part in workshops and meetings with health professionals.
