Every year more than 340,000 mothers and 3 million babies die as a result of complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Many of these deaths could be prevented with the action of qualified midwives, but in some parts of the world there are not enough resources or professionals.
Every May 5 , for more than thirty years, the International Day of the Midwife has been celebrated, and from Very Interesting we wanted to emphasize the importance of this profession today, in addition to supporting and congratulating them on their day.
What is a midwife?
The midwife is the person, duly trained and qualified, who assists women when they give birth , either in the hospital setting or in the comfort of their own home.
These are specialized professionals capable of providing a large part of the health services related to pregnancy, which is why they are one of the best-prepared professions to care for women both throughout their pregnancy and at the time of childbirth.
Something interesting is that, to refer to the profession, the term “midwife” is generally used, in feminine, for both men and women. This is probably because it has long been considered a female profession. That is why it is not uncommon to use the words “midwife” and “midwife” interchangeably to refer to the male professional.
It’s not just the day of delivery
As we have already said, the midwife is a specialist. Although in some countries a 3 or 4-year university degree is enough to become a midwife, in Spain it is necessary to have studied nursing and, after the university degree, to have completed 2 years of specialization in sexual and reproductive health. Therefore, after 6 years of studies , they are professionals prepared to assist and accompany people during the gestation process .
Their functions during this process are very varied, and not only consist of being present on the day of delivery to help the woman give birth, but they also provide assistance to pregnant women before, during and after childbirth . Among these functions, it should be noted that they carry out a strict control of the mother and her pregnancy (personal history, allergies, toxic habits, weeks of gestation, and a huge etcetera), inform and prepare the parents about the care of the baby and the mother after childbirth, and they are prepared and trained to deal with any unforeseen event or emergency during childbirth.
Although it may seem to some people that they do not have a great role, their function is very important. They are the ones in charge of monitoring the mother throughout pregnancy and after delivery, and it has been shown that the rate of maternal and newborn mortality, or complications, is lower when a midwife is present .
Courses and workshops that your midwife can offer you
Accompanying a person in the gestation process does not only consist of periodic check-ups to see that “everything is going well”. A midwife can also offer help and expertise to teach you how to deal with childbirth or newborn care.
Often, from primary care, midwives offer childbirth preparation courses , in order to prepare both mothers and fathers to face the physical effort involved in the final stretch of pregnancy and the “big day”. In these courses they teach you relaxation techniques to control pain, they show you healthy habits during pregnancy and lactation, they explain how to detect signs of complications, or they answer questions about pregnancy, childbirth, baby care, … And the benefits of these courses are not only in the explanations of these professionals, but you feel physically and emotionally accompanied by other women in your same situation.
It is also common for a midwife to offer breastfeeding workshops . Breastfeeding may seem like an easy and natural act, but it is not always achieved optimally the first time, since certain techniques and some practice are necessary for the process to be comfortable and painless. For this reason, it can be useful to have experts, such as midwives, to help you answer questions, learn tricks or guide breastfeeding so that it is comfortable and pleasant for both mother and child. In these workshops they also explain how to combine work with breastfeeding, since they teach you milk extraction and conservation techniques.
Differences between doula, midwife, midwife, midwife and gynecologist
First of all, it should be noted that midwife and midwife are the same. These are different terms to refer to the same profession. As we have already said, they are professionals with 6 years of training in nursing and sexual and reproductive health.
As for doulas , they are people, usually women, who accompany women during pregnancy, clarifying doubts and fears. Currently they do not have formal training, but they are becoming very fashionable lately because they are in charge of emotionally and physically supporting women at home during pregnancy, but never health-wise as midwives do. It should be noted that the doula does not replace the midwife , since she does not offer the same services or is specialized, but rather is a complementary figure that accompanies, supports and guides new mothers. They may or may not be present during childbirth, but they are not the ones who care for the pregnant woman, but are with them as emotional support.
Just as the doula is the unqualified person who emotionally accompanies the mother during pregnancy, the midwife , by definition, is a person without studies or academic qualifications, but with experience in delivering babies. Even so, lately this term is used indistinctly as a synonym for midwife or midwife.
And the difference between a gynecologist and a midwife ? Broadly speaking, the difference is that the first studied medicine and then specialized in sexual and reproductive health (in total, at least 10 years of training), while the second did, as we have already said, nursing and obstetric-gynecological specialty. Midwives are the ones involved in the follow-up of healthy pregnant women during pregnancy and childbirth, while the figure of the gynaecologist, although he can also monitor the pregnancy of healthy people, is the most qualified professional in the event of complications, difficult deliveries, high-risk pregnancies or caesarean sections.
It should also be noted that, although gynecologists are usually also obstetricians, the terms gynecologist and obstetrician have several differences. The gynecologist is that doctor specialized in medicine and surgery of the female reproductive system (ovaries, vagina, uterus, breasts,…), and among their usual practices they deal with contraception, fertility, pregnancy, menopause or diseases. Meanwhile, the obstetrician or obstetrician, is a professional doctor who focuses exclusively on pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum. It should be noted that today, at least in Spain, a person specialized in both fields is called a gynecologist.
Final reflection
Many times we forget the important role of the midwife in the day to day of pregnancy. A pregnant woman, when she follows up on public roads, always has an assigned midwife who helps her, answers her questions, attends to her when she is most worried, and refers her to the doctor when something worries her. On the other hand, when the follow-up is done privately, many times we forget their existence, and we no longer have the benefits of their experience and their advice to lead pregnancy and motherhood in an optimal and healthy way.
References:
Cardoza, C.P. (2020). The midwife, what is she and what does she do? Aegon’s blog. https://blog.aegon.es/salud/matrona-que-es-que-hace/
Differences between gynecologist, obstetrician and midwife (2019). ASISA. https://www.blogdeasisa.es/nosotros/salud/diferencias-ginecologo-obstetra-y-matrona/
Hurley, J. (2020). What Is a Midwife? WebMD. https://www.webmd.com/baby/what-is-a-midwife-twins
Rovati, L. (nd). What is the difference between a midwife and a doula? Babies and more. https://www.bebesymas.com/pregnancy/what-is-the-difference-between-a-midwife-and-a-doula
