Midwifery

The midwifery course has two pathways; the three year programme for direct entrants and an eighteen month programme for students who are already Registered Adult nurses (RN). The midwifery course comprises fifty pert-cent theory and fifty per-cent practice. Students on both programmes will be placed in one trust for the duration of their course, where they will gain valuable experience in midwifery practice.

An arrangement for placing students in a trust of their choice is usually discussed at interview. Each of the five trusts where students are placed provides excellent experience in all aspects of low and high risk midwifery practice. The five midwifery placement areas are:

• Queen’s Hospital, Burton and includes the Samuel Johnson Midwifery Led Unit, Lichfield
• The Manor Hospital, Walsall
• New Cross Hospital, Wolverhampton
• Russells Hall Hospital, Dudley and Sandwell District General Hospital
• West Bromwich and includes Serenity Midwifery Led Unit, City Hospital, Birmingham

The course is designed so that students will have study blocks of between 2-4 weeks followed by blocks of clinical practice of 4-8 weeks. Midwifery students will commence their first placement five weeks after the course starts. The first few weeks of practice are designed to expose students to ‘normality’ but occasionally students will be involved in more complex care from the beginning of their first placement.

Student midwives will experience a varied programme throughout their course and will be involved in antenatal, intranatal and postnatal care from the very start of their practice placement. All experiences are supported by a mentor who will teach and guide the student midwife for the duration of their placement.

Throughout the midwifery course students will go to places such as; antenatal clinic; fetal medicine unit; community; theatre/recovery; obstetric unit; antenatal/postnatal ward; neonatal unit; triage; delivery suite and day assessment unit. Students on the three year course will also have a five week medical and surgical placement in the first year and all midwifery students will have a four week critical care placement in the third year of the course.

Unique to midwifery, placements are organised by the midwifery teachers (link teachers) who will plan a whole year of a student’s placement in the trust and these are usually given to students annually.