Meeting the IM's...

So today I FINALLY met the midwives! I was incredibly nervous, even more so because of the long drive and not knowing what to expect...at all...

Rather apt Yorkshire Storks logo

Tuesdays are the weekly team meeting, where the midwives catch up on the latest goings on with their clients and confirm the appointments and schedule for the upcoming week.

I set off for my trek to Leeds early and arrived promptly, Debs arrived before Claire and got started cooking the porridge (their meetings revolve around a meal!) and I made a start on teas and coffee. 

Both were incredibly welcoming and warm, inquisitive about my course and differences between Scotland and their local trusts which is quite considerable!

 

They gave me ample opportunity to ask questions and gave candid accounts of their experience as students and within the NHS, and about their philosophy of care and how this differs to what is offered by the NHS. Probably the biggest difference is their appointments are at least an hour! 

We talked at length about their ethos which Claire described as having a deep understanding of physiological pregnancy and birth and the broad spectrum that encompasses, and a belief in that physiology to go with it using creative solutions to problem solve in the home environment. 

They also opened up about the stark realities of being an independent midwife (IM) and the fear of persecution for facilitating true informed decision making, as well as the incorrect assumptions made about the population they serve. I incorrectly thought that women who are paying for independent midwifery services would likely be very educated, 'low risk', and relatively well off and the reality is far different. Their population have complex histories and are not people who the NHS would deem 'suitable' for home birth, and it often involves navigating consultants and registrars as part of the MDT.

Independent midwifery and private midwives, which are not the same, are in my experience not always thought highly upon, often related to NHS privatisation. Whatever your stance, non-NHS care is increasingly being sought after and there is obviously a broken system that is not meeting the needs of all its users, and IMs offer true continuity of carer and the opportunity to build meaningful relationships beneficial not just mentally for the women, but physically too and can offer better 'job' satisfaction. 

One thing was made clear, independent midwifery is a lifestyle and not just a job for this collective.