Making a Midwife

Hey #midweekmidwifery fam! We are back with another brilliant episode for you! 🌟 This episode features the one and only Professor Mary Renfrew. Most recently, Mary has held the position of Professor fo Mother and Infant Health at a University in Scotland. While she is in fact trying to retire, she has been called upon and roped into further research following COVID and how grateful we are that sh...

*Please be advised, this episode discusses infant loss and medical termination* In this weeks episode we hear from the beautiful and very generous Liana who walks us through her study journey into midwifery, her personal experiences with infant loss and also her wealth of knowledge as a bereavement midwife. Liana is very honest in sharing her experiences and wisdom in an area that can feel extreme...

This week we meet Jo! Jo speaks about her birthing experiences as well as what it's been like returning to study as a mature ages student. This episode also talks around training as a doula and how midwifery training can fit into that. Enjoy! We hope you enjoy this episode! If you'd like to show your support, let us know what you think of the show by leaving a rating and review. You can also find...

We are so excited to be starting 2021 with this beautiful student midwife from England. Lotty is just about to graduate her Bachelor of Midwifery and move into the workforce. She generously shares her midwifery journey, touching on the different models within the UK, explains what all our UK friends mean by their “Access course and Interviews” and shares what it is like to be a student midwife in...

In this episode we meet Lauren, a second year direct entry student from Victoria. Lauren talks through her first experience with a midwife and her journey and passion for midwifery. It was great to hear Lauren's perspective as a student midwife and mother from Victoria through the COVID pandemic and also being pregnant herself. We loved hearing about Lauren's journey and am so pleased to be able t...

Hey #midweekmidwifery fam! In today’s episode we meet Dr Hazel Keedle from New South Wales! Hazel is a midwifery lecturer and researcher and is passionate about Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC) and women's experiences of maternity care. P.S. sorry about the sound quality in the intro of this ep! We really enjoyed learning about Hazel’s journey into midwifery, starting as a nurse, her travels an...

In this episode we met Judith, a direct entry midwife from Victoria. Judith shares her journey into midwifery, her experiences along the way and some great advice for students on placement and with continuity of care experiences.

This week we meet Dr Zoe Bradfield, a Midwifery lecturer and Research Fellow based in Western Australia. Zoe shares her journey into midwifery, her career progression into research and her current role as a lecturer, researcher and work with the Australian College of Midwives. We so enjoyed hearing from Zoe about her research on midwives' experiences of being 'with woman', how this concept was und...

This episode features the wonderful Dr Rachel Reed! Rachel is a registered midwife, midwifery lecturer, podcast co-host on The Midwives' Cauldron with Katie James AND the amazing midwife behind the blog 'MidwifeThinking'. In this episode we learn more about Rachel's journey to midwifery, why having her children made her a better midwife and her take on the stages of labour we are taught at uni. Sh...

In this episode we meet Alisoun, a student from Victoria studying the dual degree. Alisoun shares her placement experiences and the cross over between the nursing and midwifery degree. It was so interesting to hear about Alisoun's perspective on nursing and midwifery placements, the benefits of nursing and also about how she processed witnessing a very upsetting event on a placement early on in th...

This week we hear from Sally, a midwifery student from Victoria. Sally shares her experiences with her own births, her interesting journey to becoming a student midwife and how she copes with studying with young children (another supporter of the #3amClub woo!). Please note, in Sally's story we learn about her own experience of loss and termination for medical reasons, so please consider if this e...

Hey #midweekmidwifery fam, here we are again with another marvellous episode! Featuring the one and only, Sheena Byrom! Sheena is well known for her work humanising birth, developing birth centres, pro-bono consultative work, multiple leadership positions and for being the co-owner of the amazing global resource 'All4Maternity' with her daughter Anna and The Practising Midwife Journal. Sheena shar...

In this episode we chat with Christian, a male midwife who is caring for women in remote communities in the Northern Territory. Christian shares his journey into midwifery and the experiences he faced whilst completing placements in such a fiercely female dominated profession. It was so interesting to gain some perspective from a male student and also get some insight into cultural safety practice...

This episode features Michaela a second year student from Victoria and a peer mentor volunteer for the Australasian Birth Trauma Association - a wonderful charity to assist those suffering from birth trauma by connecting them with others who have shared experiences, resources and health professionals in their area. Michaela shares her experience of being pregnant while studying, the challenges of...

This episode features a special guest, Professor Hannah Dahlen AM. If this name sounds familiar to our Australian and New Zealander listeners, it should! Hannah is a named author on our midwifery textbooks ‘Midwifery: Preparation for Practice’ and an incredibly well known midwife for her research and plethora of publications. Hannah shares her experiences in midwifery, from her first catch at the...

This episode features the vibrant Sara Davis as she chats with us about her time as a student, her midwife super-power and the fear she felt after graduating. Sara talks through avoiding burnout and challenging the medicalisation of birth as well as telling us about her PHD in which she is developing a tool to assist in implementing change for the better in midwifery practice.

In this episode we chat with the beautiful Katie about her journey into midwifery, the lessons she has learnt along the way, the power of a cup of tea, and we get into the nitty gritty of breastfeeding support. Katie speaks so wonderfully about her time in midwifery and is such an inspiring and engaging educator.

On today's episode I chat with Jade - she applied for 3 grad programs across Australia and has accepted for an interview for all three. She talks us through her application process, interview prep and also how her grad year is going!

In today's episode we hear from Tamara who is in her final year. She takes us through deciding to leave midwifery study after her second child was born and then coming back to it 2 years later. Tamara is passionate about women's rights and shares her commitment to making positive change in midwifery and improving the birth experience for women.

This episode I chat with Lara about not getting a graduate position, doing a re-entry year and still feeling the passion after having to come up against big obstacles. Lara shares her journey of coming back to study mid after a break when her graduate application year was extremely tough with higher numbers of students and very limited places. Lara shares the differences of studying with and witho...

In this episode Dioni chats about being a mature age student and starting study once her kids were older and also the services and resources her uni offered to support her in the academic side of learning. She also discusses how differently she views birth since starting her midwifery study.

Today I talk with Lorraine, a registered midwife originally trained in Ireland who now works in Western Australia. Lorraine offers fantastic insight into student midwife - preceptor relationships and how to get the most out of your placement. She also discusses burnout, direct entry midwifery and shares encouragement around persisting through hard days.

Today the tables are turned and the podcast host, Bonnie, chats with Megan about her study story. Bonnie talks about mum-guilt and the way she finds time in the day to study with a newborn and a toddler. She also touches on feeling out of her depth academically and how communication is key when needing support.

In this episode I chat with Megan. Megan discusser her experience of building trust with women quickly in high stress situations on placement. She also shares the challenges of trying to manage full time and work full time study.