Celebrating International Day of the Midwife

On Tuesday 5 May it’s International Day of the midwife, a day where we celebrate the amazing contribution midwives have made. Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, midwives have continued to go above and beyond to support women and their new-borns, as well as each other.  We are so very proud of all of the midwives at Herts, who are working extremely hard to provide care to families during this time.

Midwives at Herts: 

At Herts with have over 50 midwifery students who have opted into an extended placement (both third year BSc and those on the shortened course). We are extremely proud of each and every one of you for your hard-work and amazing contribution in supporting the maternity teams. We are very grateful to you for the care you are providing for families at this time.

We have extremely strong partnerships with a number of local NHS Trusts: East and North Hertfordshire, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Royal Free London, West Hertfordshire Hospitals, Luton and Dunstable University, Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals and Southend University Hospital. We also want to show our gratitude to all of the midwives at these local NHS Trusts. We truly appreciate everything you do.

The International Day of the Midwife is a day to celebrate the work of midwives all over the world. Even throughout this global pandemic, you have continued to show true dedication and resilience.

Student Story: Zoe Matthews 

Zoe Matthews talks about her experience of being on placement at a hospital in London, as part of her final year of her BSc (Hons) Pre-Registration Midwifery course:

 “The final year of my course has been about bringing everything I’ve learnt over the last three years and tying it together. It’s daunting, being this close to qualifying, but I’m excited for what the future holds.

Working at a London hospital is challenging, but it’s been fantastic. The community is rich and diverse; you learn a lot from the people you interact with. You get involved at the very beginning of your placement and mentors work closely with you to make sure you’re learning the skills and competencies you need. The support I’ve had from the University and the hospital has been fantastic.

You get to experience different midwifery specialities whilst on placement and my favourite has been caring for women in the community. It’s in these low-risk settings where you can really build relationships with the woman and their families. It’s an honour and a privilege to be part of what is a life-changing experience for them."

Staff Story: Laura Abbott 

Dr Laura Abbott trained at Herts as a student midwife in 1998 and has been coming back ever since – first to do her Masters, then as a lecturer and a doctoral student! She is now a Senior Lecturer in the University’s School of Health and Social Work and an expert in maternity care for English prisons. Her research field focuses on the experiences of perinatal women who are in the criminal justice system.

Following the Coronavirus outbreak, Laura has been working closely with several organisations including Birth Companions, Women in Prison, Trevi House and Hibiscus to support the release of pregnant women from custody due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Laura talked about the work she has been involved with recently on LBC Radio, following the release of pregnant women from prison during the pandemic,

Get involved  

There are loads of ways you can get involved in showing your support for our midwives! Although we are unable to hold events together, you can still show your support by taking part in online events or getting creative with some decorations:

1. Colouring Templates – The Royal College of Midwives has put together some colouring templates for you to colour in and stick up on your windows to show your support! Click here to download a template and start getting creative.

2. Take a selfie – Download a selfie card here, take a picture and attach a positive message to your selfie to let midwives around the country know you’re grateful for everything they do!


Or you could take a ‘Yellow Selfie’ to share on social media! Yellow is a positive colour, the colour of spring and optimism.

Put on your favourite yellow top, take a selfie and post it on social media with the hashtags:
#IDM2020 #YearoftheNurseandMidwife
and show your support for our Herts midwives.




3. Social Media #IThank campaign - Social media is a great way to get your message across to lots of people. Show your support by using the hashtag #IThank and include a heartfelt message to midwives across the country. If you want to show particular thanks to an individual this can be a really nice way to do it!

4. Put up some decorations! – Get creative and put up some decorations to celebrate our midwives! You can download some blue bunting from the Royal College of Midwives here. 

Find out more 

To find out more about the International Day of the Midwife from the Royal College of Midwives, click here.

The International Confederation of Midwives leads the celebration of the work of midwives. Find out more about them here.