The role of a midwife

The word ‘midwife’ means ‘with woman’, but what is a midwife? Midwives are specialists in normal pregnancy and birth, and the midwife's role is to look after a pregnant woman and her baby throughout the antenatal period, during labour and birth, and for up to 28 days after the baby has been born.

The role of a midwife

As long as everything is normal in pregancy, a midwife can provide all your antenatal care. If complications arise, a midwife will refer you to a doctor who is trained to deal with special situations.
Within the NHS there are hospital and community midwives. 

• Hospital midwives are midwives who are based in a hospital obstetric, or consultant unit, a birth centre or midwife led unit, and they staff the antenatal clinic, labour ward, and postnatal wards.
• Community midwives often work in teams and provide a degree of continuity of care. In pregnancy they see you either at home or at a clinic. When you go into labour they are available for a home birth, or in a few places, they may come into the labour ward in the hospital to be with you. Once your baby is born, they’ll visit you at home for up to ten days after birth. Community midwives also provide postnatal care for women who have been looked after during labour by hospital midwives.

There are also private independent midwives who work independently of the NHS and mainly work with women planning a home birth. Doulas and birth companions are not midwives, but women who are trained to support you before, during and after birth. 

Your relationship with a midwife

It is important that you and your midwife have a good relationship. You need to work together and she needs to support you in all your choices. In order to help you give birth, your midwife needs to be respectful, responsive, unintrusive, and accepting. This will help to make you feel safe and enable you to relax, which in turn allows the labour hormones to work.

Childbirth may be the most powerful life experience you undergo. With a midwife’s full support, you can tap into enormous reserves of strength during the birth process and learn that you are capable of so much more than you realised – a valuable discovery as you become a mother.

What training has my midwife had?

Some midwives have trained as nurses before becoming midwives, but it’s now possible to qualify as a midwife without qualifying as a nurse first. Student midwives are based at university, and are studying for either a diploma or a degree in midwifery. The course contains a mixture of theory and practice. Courses vary across the country, but are designed to prepare a student for the responsibilities of being a midwife.

Once qualified, a midwife must be able to care for women throughout pregnancy, birth, and during the postnatal period too, as well as care for newborn babies. She must be able to detect problems and summon medical help if needed, and be trained in emergency procedures herself. She also has a role in health education and preparation for parenthood, such as teaching antenatal classes.

Midwives also have to stay up to date in order to keep their registration. This includes having to work a minimum number of hours as a midwife and attend study events.

Contacting a midwife

You can go directly to a midwife for antenatal care. If you don’t know how to contact your midwife, ask your health centre, or the Supervisor of Midwives at the local hospital. You do not need to see an obstetrician (a doctor who specialises in childbirth) while you are pregnant or giving birth, if all is well. 

Further information

NCT's helpline offers practical and emotional support in all areas of pregnancy, birth and early parenthood: 0300 330 0700.  We also offer antenatal courses which are a great way to find out more about birth, labour and life with a new baby.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council website gives more information on the role of the midwife. 

You can also get an insight into what midwives do at the Royal College of Midwives website.

The organisation Independent Midwives UK represents the majority of independent midwives in the UK.  

NHS Choices gives a list of questions to ask your midwife or GP.