My name is Jenny and I have been a Registered Nurse/Midwife for the past 40 years. I have been fortunate enough to have gained experience in Victoria, New Zealand, New South Wales, and for the past 16 years in Queensland here at The Wesley Hospital, gaining a Clinical Nurse position 8 years ago.

As a very young girl, I loved hearing stories about my grandmothers nursing experiences working with a renowned plastic surgeon in New Zealand. I was in awe of the work they did treating burns patients and children with cleft lips/palates, and from there I knew I wanted to be a nurse. It was only after finishing my nursing training did I decide to become a midwife.

I love being a midwife because we are dealing with clients at the most intimate times of their lives and we are able to care for them and their loved ones, and make a big difference in their journey into parenthood. The role of a midwife is more diverse than people realise. We provide health and parenting education, as well as supporting new parents and their families throughout the childbearing process alongside their obstetricians. This extends to home visits, breastfeeding support and ongoing parenting education.

I look at the age I am today and realise retirement is on the cards someday. I will miss my amazing colleagues that I have had the privilege of working with and the friendships I have made. The vast experience and the depth of knowledge and care that is given to the patients is something I am very proud to be a part of. We are a great and supportive team, and this has been highlighted through the pandemic. We have all been put under stress, even short staffed at times and often had to work extra hours to cover sick leave. It can be exhausting but incredibly satisfying at the end of a busy shift to say we all worked together and our patients are safe and well looked after. Then we come back and do it all again tomorrow with a smile on our face!

For anyone thinking about becoming a midwife I believe it takes being patient and focussed, non-judgmental, calm under pressure and a good sense of humour. If we listen to women, encourage them, don't judge them and do the best to give them the birth they are hoping for, then we have done a good job.