Midwives

Midwives

About the department

Maternity Services at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust provide antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal care to approximately 4,800 women per year. The service enjoys close links with neighbouring NHS trusts, particularly Oxford and Royal Berkshire which enables the development of new and exciting services based on shared research, data and user feedback both locally and nationally.

The working environment is great too – with midwifery-led birth centres in High Wycombe and Aylesbury. The labour ward and inpatient services sit in a modern, spacious environment with easy access to outpatient antenatal services including a day assessment unit which is available 7 days a week.

About the role

Working as a midwife you will join an experienced and dedicated team of professionals and play a vital role in the delivery of women-centred care and the Better Births plan. Over the next 2 years the Trust will be implementing its plans for enhancing personalised care for women and families.

The Trust is home to the internationally renowned Spinal Injuries Centre and you will have the opportunity to support users of this service, as their midwife, in our dedicated space on the consultant-led unit.

Developing and uncovering talent within our team plays a fundamental role in our desire to provide outstanding care to women and their families. This is why we will support you to grow within your role and progress your career.

Career routes

Routes into midwifery are changing and we are one of the first Trusts in the country to offer the new midwifery apprenticeship scheme for those that are already registered nurses. If you wish to enter midwifery directly from A-levels, or as a mature student, you will need to undertake a degree in pre-registration midwifery. We have close links with local universities and will support your development as a student and continue this support when you become a newly qualified midwife through our robust preceptorship programme.

Mini case study

My name is Amy and I am a Midwife, currently working in the Birth Centre and Labour Ward at Stoke Mandeville Hospital. I have joined as a continuity of carer midwife which is part of the national ‘Better Births’ initiative. My role involves providing antenatal care for a group of women, where I provide educational tools to allow women to make informed decisions about the care they receive. When in labour, as far as possible, these same women then receive care from myself or a midwife they have previously met, to provide them with continuity. It is a privilege to be part of such defining moment within a family’s journey and I seek to facilitate positive birth experiences for each of the women I care for. The aspect I like most about working for the Trust is the fantastic team I work with, where compassion and safety is at the forefront of the care we give.