If you are looking for a rewarding new career that allows you to feel like you make a difference, then midwifery could be the job for you. There are more than 35,000 midwifes in the UK, but with more than 700,000 babies born every year, there is still a need for new midwifes across the country.
If you are interested in becoming a midwife, then read on to find out the skills, training and personal qualities that you need to be able to do the job.
The right attitude and personality
While it is very rewarding to be a midwife, those considering it as a career move need to bear in mind that it is a demanding job that comes with lots of responsibility and unsociable hours.
You will need to be willing enough to cope with long working days and be happy to do shifts that will be very different to the your partner and family’s working patterns.
A midwife also needs to be prepared to stay emotionally strong if one of your patients gets bad news, so it helps if you are as empathic and supportive as you are resilient.
What does a midwife do?
Many people think of the day a baby is delivered when they imagine what a midwife does for a job. However, midwives offer pregnant women support from early on in their pregnancy right through until after the birth.
The role can include meeting patients at their home, a hospital or GP’s surgery as their pregnancy progresses and you may be involved in any scans and tests that are carried out on women and their babies.
Most midwives are registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council and they will be assessed every three years to check that they still meet all the desired requirements.
The qualifications you will need
Midwifes need to complete a degree course to qualify for this role. While some midwives pursue this degree at a young age as their first career path, other women decide to qualify as a midwife after working as a nurse for some years.
Middlesex University has a number of midwifery degrees and nursing degrees available and if you are a registered nurse, you can complete a short midwifery BSc honors course in 18 months.
If you would like more information about the midwife degrees available, visit http://www.mdx.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/nursing/index.aspx
