Gifhorn. Support expectant and new mothers with advice and support and help bring new life into the world: The midwives Wiebke Gerwien and Tanja Neumann from Gifhorn live their dream job – and would choose it again and again. They regret that the conditions in the health system appear to be discouraging more and more young women from imitating them. Especially since they have recently seen a development that they do not want to see as a trend.
Read more after the ad
Read more after the ad
Neumann was already clear about her career aspirations when she was on the final stretch of graduating from high school. “My own mother introduced me to it.” She realized how fascinated her fourth daughter was by pregnant women and always wanted to stroke their round tummies. Today, the 47-year-old works as a freelancer in postpartum care and also works as an employee at the midwifery center in the Gifhorn district.
Dream job long ago found: The midwives Tanja Neumann (l.l.) and Wiebke Gerwien want reinforcements – and see health policy as responsible.
© Quelle: Lea Behrens
“I was first a pediatric nurse,” reports her colleague Gerwien. “I wanted to do something with children.” After five years, she changed her focus. Today, the 50-year-old works as a freelancer in postnatal care and otherwise works in the delivery room at the Helios Clinic when she is not doing organizational work there as deputy head. She has “never regretted” her decision.
Read more after the ad
Read more after the ad
Midwives: More than just obstetrics
Midwives help newborns into the world: However, obstetrics is only one aspect of the much broader job description.
The freelance midwife Tanja Neumann from Gifhorn also helped with the birth during her time in the delivery room. However, this is not currently part of their portfolio. Before the birth, she gives help with pregnancy problems and supports pregnant women with advice and support in preparing for the birth. After the birth, she looks after mother and child, offers postnatal exercises and also serves as a contact person – especially for fathers. “As midwives, we are guides after the birth.” As a freelancer, she appreciates being able to make decisions herself and work out care individually for each mother, without a boss talking her into it. Because she is the boss herself.
Wiebke Gerwien from Gifhorn also works as a freelancer, but is employed at the Helios Clinic Gifhorn, where she works shifts and is deputy manager and practice instructor for young colleagues. She also provides postpartum care before the birth and, unlike Neumann, is also present at the birth. A large part of her work is working in the delivery room. The workload as deputy head should not be underestimated. Both midwives are mothers themselves.
“It’s always a miracle to accompany someone’s life,” says Gerwien. “I consider it a privilege to be able to be there,” says Neumann. “Oh, you’re a midwife, how beautiful”: When she hears that, she says: “Yes! That just works for me.”
Contact point for advice and assistance regarding birth: The midwifery center of the Peine district is located in the clinic.
© Source: Peine Hospital
The two experienced midwives attribute the fact that fewer and fewer young women find the career of midwife desirable to the working conditions. By this they don’t just mean the expandable remuneration, but even more so the dynamics that arise from the situation: the more people leave, the more stressful it becomes for those who remain.
City of Wolfsburg: Clinic is looking for reinforcements
There are currently 18 midwives employed at the Wolfsburg Clinic, who hold a total of 15.15 full-time positions. In addition, there are three full-time recognized midwives from Italy, as well as three to four temporary midwives every month, the clinic said in response to a WAZ request. The midwives are supported by three medical specialists. “With this staffing ratio there would be a 3.3.2. Occupation is generally possible,” says the clinic. “In order to be able to better compensate for short-term staff shortages, for example due to illness, we are still looking for midwives.” For training, there are collaborations with the Braunschweig Midwifery School for four midwife trainees, as well as collaborations with the Mittelstand University within the framework of academic training ( FHM) with seven studying midwives and the University of Göttingen with 14 studying midwives.
Read more after the ad
Read more after the ad
Peine district: Five young midwives newly registered in 2022
Of the 29 midwives in the Peine district who are listed at the midwifery center there, six colleagues could soon be retiring or have already reached the age to do so. District spokeswoman Katja Schröder: “The transition of midwives into retirement can only be seen in relative terms, as colleagues are still working to a reduced extent even in retirement.” Five young colleagues registered last year. The district does not have exact figures for midwives in training. The training takes place at universities.
Gifhorn district: We need ten more midwives
Of the 41 midwives in the Gifhorn district, 17 are between 50 and 59 years old, three are over 60, according to district spokeswoman Dr. Annika Döweling. 33 mothers are on the waiting list at the midwife center. Actually, ten more midwives would be needed. But recruiting young talent is difficult. While Neumann, for example, completed a classic three-year vocational training back then, the profession is now academic: “In the Gifhorn district, it is not possible to study midwifery at any institution,” says Döweling. Study locations in Lower Saxony are Oldenburg, Göttingen, Osnabrück and Hanover. “Three students are now starting to study midwifery through the Helios Clinic Gifhorn.”
Making a job attractive: What the districts are doing about it
According to Schröder, in Peine there is the possibility of applying for a grant for further training or setting up a business. The district also provides a free course room.
Read more after the ad
Read more after the ad
Gifhorn is taking the path of awarding scholarships. According to Döweling, a total of nine midwives have received a scholarship since 2018. Two are currently still being supported, one midwife has stopped training. Since 2019, the district has also granted a subsidy for “training support for midwives/maternity nurses” 13 times: the subsidized midwives accompany midwifery students in practice. Since then, two midwives have received start-up grants to start their own business.
33 expectant mothers in the Gifhorn district were left without care
According to Döweling, the 33 mothers on the Gifhorn waiting list are currently without care. According to Schröder, the Peine district is also noticing “undersupply in individual areas of activity”. Expectant parents should therefore take care of this early on. Döweling advises contacting the midwife center. “This provides midwives when capacities become available, offers its own courses, consultation hours and the Storchennest Café.”
How to reach the midwife centers
The midwife center of the Gifhorn district is at Braunschweiger Straße 15 in Gifhorn (old vinegar factory) and has consultation hours on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. It also has a Café Storchennest as a contact point and meeting point for parents with children up to one year old. At the same time, you have the chance to receive professional advice from the midwives on topics relating to pregnancy, birth, the postpartum period, breastfeeding, complementary feeding and timely development. Further information on Tel. (0 172) 6 03 83 94, email info@hebammenzentrale-landkreis-gifhorn.de.
The Peine district midwife center is in the Peine Clinic, Virchowstraße 8 a.m., and has office hours Monday from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Tuesday to Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. Further information on Tel. (0 51 71) 9 88 56 85, email hebammenzentrale@landkreis-peine.de.
Gerwien and Neumann advise all affected parents to report their experiences with inadequate care on the homepage of the German Midwives Association. There is an interactive map that provides better information the more people take part. Otherwise, the two midwives see the political need to change the framework conditions so that more young women – and men – who want to work with people can come back into the job.
Please do not have a home birth without a midwife: the experts warn of a worrying development.
© Source: Uli Deck dpa archive
Read more after the ad
Read more after the ad
Home birth without a midwife? Not entirely safe
Gerwien and Neumann see an urgent need to recruit young talent, both from freelance midwives and midwives who work in the delivery room. Home births have become rare in Gifhorn, but recently some mothers have given birth to their children at home unaccompanied because they are afraid of coming into a supposedly overcrowded delivery room. Midwives view this development with concern. A birth is always associated with certain risks.
AZ/WAZ
#Home #birth #midwife #Experts #warn #demand #politicians #measures #combat #shortage #skilled #workers
