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Graduate midwives set to stay
31, January 2008
Four new midwives graduating from Hunter New England Health’s innovative midwifery program tomorrow (Friday, 1 February) will all stay employed in the northern part of the Area, further adding to maternity staff numbers.
The graduation, to be held at Tamworth Hospital, will be a fitting celebration for successful graduands - Judith Gow (Inverell), Lyn McBride (Tamworth), Regan Penglaze (Moree), and Kim van der Wegen (Moree).
The midwives will remain employed with Hunter New England Health after completing a year-long distance education Postgraduate Diploma of Midwifery. The course is offered by Hunter New England Health through the Rural Midwifery Education Program, in conjunction with Charles Sturt University.
Kim van der Wegen, who is based at Moree, said the distance education program was the ideal way to fulfil her dream of becoming a midwife without having to leave the local area.
“I really love Moree so it was great that I was able to stay and study ‘on the job’, rather than having to move away to further my career,” Kim said.
Tamworth’s Lyn McBride said she found midwifery deeply satisfying and securing a full-time position at Tamworth Hospital’s maternity unit was the icing on the cake.
“This program has been the opportunity of a lifetime – it’s just excellent,” Lyn said.
“Studying while working in the maternity unit has been ideal and rotating between Tamworth, Inverell and Armidale has given me a really broad experience of rural midwifery.”
Co-ordinator of the Rural Midwifery Education Program, Robin Skewes, said more than 70 midwives have now completed their midwifery training through the program since 1993. She said the program allowed the midwives to study in or nearby their home-towns, while getting exposure to a wider variety of clinical experiences than graduates from other diplomas or degrees offered in NSW.
“The students are employed by one of the four participating hospitals (Armidale, Inverell, Moree and Tamworth) and rotate between at least three of these hospitals throughout the course. This means they undertake 12 months of clinical practice concurrently with the theoretical component – a distinct advantage,” said Robin.
The distance education mode enables registered nurses living within the region to gain a midwifery qualification whilst remaining in the rural environment close to their families.
Hunter New England Health Director of Nursing and Midwifery, Chris Kewley will be key-note speaker for the graduation ceremony.
Contact: Emma Gibbs
Phone: 6767 7137 or 0428 114 767
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