I was once offered a midwife job in a small rural community called Bairnsdale, in Australia.
Circumstances changed which meant I couldn’t take it, but I've always wondered what that alternate midwifery reality would have been like...
Australia fascinates me: it has weather ranging from cyclones to intense heat, is the world’s largest island, has the most dangerous and aggressive wildlife and the indigenous people were there well before homo sapiens inhabited Europe and America. Australian healthcare professionals I've met have always been capable, cheerful and funny in a post-frontier culture kind of way.
Therefore when I got sent a copy of 'Australian Midwives' I already thought I'd like it. (Just going to take a minute to be grateful that someone is sending me midwifery books through the post, that's basically a childhood dream of mine!)
But author Paula Heelan, who I've been chatting to online, has managed to record the real life events of labour and birth in a way which few writers manage.
The book is split into 13 chapters based on different midwives’ experiences. It captures Aussie humour concerning pilots called 'Raggs', Curly Wurlys and women faking labour to get an emergency transfer to the nearest town.
It's also good at catching that complete lack of sentimentality/panic that every Australian I've met seems to embody.
There's a problem with the transfer plane meaning there’s smoke pouring out and they’re not sure why? The pilot describes the situation as ‘our world just got a little busy’. Haha!
I’ve done air transfers as a New Zealand midwife and I was lucky in that the clients were highly unlikely to need any emergency care. However, despite the beautiful scenery and romantic sunsets out of the plane window, it’s still a scary thought that it’ll just be you up there if anything goes wrong.
In the first chapter of ‘Australian Midwives’, an emergency transfer goes terribly wrong…
I don’t want to spoil things by giving you any more information but Paula does a great job of sticking you in the middle of those birth situations.
She uses the phrase 'disaster magnet' to describe one midwife and I smiled at this, as I remember the same words being used to describe an old colleague of mine from New Zealand. I was 99% sure I’d have an emergency with her every time we worked together, one time I wasn't even working on her ward and I still ended up involved with one of her patients having an eclamptic fit! She never failed to teach me something new.
'Australian Midwives’ is a great book for escapism reading and you’ll get some brilliant insight into midwifery too (though do bear in mind optimal cord clamping was adopted in practice after some of these stories took place).
It’ll also give you some understanding of the clinical and practical side of midwifery, as the situations are extreme enough to show you how sometimes triage (meaning deciding on the order of what to do first in an emergency) is key.
Co-ordinating a labour ward in the UK is a huge responsibility and can be scary in its own right. But the logistics of where to land a plane based on fuel, resources, and the expertise of teams available in the area, while two or more lives hang in the balance, is another thing altogether.
The care and treatment of Aboriginal Australian women and families is also interesting and can teach us a lot. We don’t often hear about this client group this side of the world.
It’s a great example of complex ethical midwifery issues in action. For instance, Aboriginal Australians still have an average lifespan of about ten years less than non-Aboriginal Australians, which is a huge inequality. Midwives can help bridge the gap by giving excellent, individualised care.
When you think about that, the fact that poverty prompted one Aboriginal woman to fake labour to get a transfer plane to another town with a cheaper clothes shop seems more like a reasonable stab at levelling out opportunities than someone taking advantage…
If I didn't have other plans, I'd be on Skyscanner looking at plane tickets. I’ll try and resist the wanderlust for now!
Author Paula Heelan can be found here (she's also an amazing photographer) and though I don't think her book is available on Amazon for the UK yet, you can get hold of a copy here.
Now I’d love to hear from you
1. Are you an Australian midwife? Any stories to share?
2. Are you a UK midwife who is tempted to go and work in Australia? How would you organise this, what would the first step be?
3. Are you an aspiring midwife who would like to work there one day?
Leave a comment, you never know where putting your intentions down in words might lead you...
I hope you have a wonderful week, whatever midwifery and life throws your way.
Ellie x
An interesting post, thanks! I’m a US citizen aiming to become a midwife and practice in Australia! I’ve already visited there for about 2 years, and love the place 🙂
Hi, I’m Penny, I trained as a nurse and midwife in England many moons ago! I have been very lucky as worked in Africa for The East African Flying Doctors, where I met and married my husband, we then immigrated to New Zealand where we now have 3 beautiful first generation Kiwi daughters. I worked for several years in NZ when I saw an advert for duel nurses and midwives wanted in Australia. For the last 10years I have worked in both countries, 6 months here and 6 months there, and have loved it! I now have decided to work only in Australia when I want, usually for 3-6 months at a time, working in rural and remote areas, I adore the Aboriginal people. I have worked in contracts through the many nursing agencies in Australia, they keep me up to date with online education, assist with all the necessary paperwork including applying for registrations, and arrange flights and usually accommodation as well. A brilliant experience, and I’ve met many wonderful people, making long time friendships. If you decide to make the step I’m sure you won’t regret it. good luck!
Penny, how have I only just seen this! Thanks so much for your comment, and I hope you and yours are well. If you’d ever like to contribute anything for Midwife Diaries on your fascinating career (I remember chatting to you on postnatal ward about this) that would be amazing.
Much love.
I’m a student midwife in Australia, and I have to say your description of Australian culture makes me laugh! I live in a regional area and do my placement at a hospital with 1200 births a year. I’d love to go rural one day and also to go to the UK or NZ to work for a while. I’ll definitely be grabbing a copy of this book over my summer break to keep the midwifery excitement flowing. Another great one is The Outback Midwife by Beth McRae.
I am a greek midwife practising in uk for over 10 years and i got a family connection with Australia…i love to go over there one day and if i can practice it would be very fascinating
I’m currently a second year student midwife who’s main goal is to practice within Australia in the next couple of years. I find it fascinating to see how the two countries compare and it would be interesting to hear some other stories from Australian midwives or ‘poms’ who have made the journey!
I can highly recommend another Australian author, Fiona Macarthur, She writes novels about midwives and has just released an anthology of stories from Australian midwives. She is a lovely down to earth lady, who is a clinical educator midwife in the spaces between writing books. LOL http://www.fionamcarthurauthor.com/
I’m a uk trained midwife who made the move 2 months ago to Oz. It’s a paperwork exercise to get over here but loving the lifestyle and being away from the NHS in a role in valued in.
What were the requirements for entry Claire? Is it 2 year post qualifying? Is the cost of living pretty good with your salary? Husband would love us to move out there! I am not so sure 🙂
3 months to register, most employers ask for 1 year expert experience. We manage fine on my wage and I’m paid more for less hours.
I am a U.K. Midwife living in Australia. I have been here two years now and had my second baby here. I am just about start my first job as a Midwife here after finally jumping through all the hoops of the visa process and the AHPRA (equivalent of the NMC) process. They are not making the process easy for experienced midwives to come here anymore. If you don’t have a degree, you won’t get registered without doing a top up qualification. If you havent done a continuity of care module as part of your qualification they (AHPRA) will make you do a period of supervised practice. It’s a paper work exercise really, you don’t actually have to be supervised as such but trying to explain that to potential employers has been tricky. It not as easy to come here as it once was, visa sponsorship has been limited as there are a lot of newly qualified midwives that can’t get jobs even though they have an Australian qualification. Also public and private sectors are vastly different. Public sector is the closest you’ll get to working autonomously like you would in the NHS. Private sector think America, social inductions and C Sections etc etc……Rural jobs often require you to have a dual nursing qualification also.
Despite all the blood, sweat and tears it has taken to get me and my family here, I love it and have no intention of heading back to the UK or the NHS anytime soon, the lifestyle is fabulous !!!
I lived in Australia for 3 year and I absolutely loved it! I actually started my EN training out there in Rockhampton and for the most part of my time in Australia I lived in a small outback town called Blackall, I have to say I preferred the outback to the coast. I only came back because of family reasons but my dream is now to do my Midwifery degree here and move back with my son so I can finally reunite with my friends and bring my son up somewhere where there is an amazing way of life!
Hi Lauren. We are about five hours from Blackall. Do hope you make it back to the west before too long. We need midwives out here!
I’ve certainly considered moving abroad. If nothing else to look back at the NHS with rose tinted glasses or to be definitive that I want to move overseas. The grass may always look greener, but that doesn’t mean that isn’t greener on the other side.
I’ve thought about working there a couple of times, especially since some distant family have just moved. I’m an aspiring midwife and this has just made me very curious about working there rather than just liking the idea of it. Thank you!
I am due to begin my training in the UK in September. I’m hoping to complete my 3 week elected placement in Aus and hopefully practice out there when I complete my training!!
Extremely interesting to read, thank you for this post. I am a first year student midwife from the UK and hoping to move to Australia when qualified, working as a midwife down under in Australia has always fascinated me.