January 5, 2023 8.00 am This story is over 15 months old

Biggest ever Lincolnshire midwife cohort join hospitals after local university degree

A record high for recruitment of new midwives in Lincolnshire
11 new midwives have joined Lincolnshire's paternity services, the most successful recruitment drive in the county's history for midwifery. | Photo: ULHT
By Local Democracy Reporter

Lincolnshire maternity services have welcomed the largest ever midwife cohort to the county, following a successful recruitment drive working alongside the University of Lincoln.

A total of 11 midwives were appointed to join United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust, all of which were among the first graduates of the University of Lincoln’s new midwifery degree.

Eight of the midwives will work at Lincoln County Hospital and the other three at Pilgrim Hospital Boston, supporting families within maternity services across Lincolnshire.

It is the single largest cohort of newly qualified midwives to ever be appointed in Lincolnshire at one given time – and an initial preceptorship week was arranged to help the qualified midwives find their feet in their new roles.

Molly East, who is now working at Pilgrim Hospital Boston as a newly qualified midwife, said: “I have always had a pull towards midwifery. Being able to advocate for women and being a part of a new family beginning is an absolute honour.

“The support I’ve had from Pilgrim maternity team has been paramount and I have found it really useful being in contact with all the other new starters. Being able to have an open conversation with them about my own progress and how they are getting on has really helped with finding my feet.

“All in all, I have had a great start to my career and I know with the team I have surrounding me I can continue to excel.”

Katie Mitchell, Clinical Preceptor Support Midwife at Pilgrim Hospital Boston, said: “It has been a pleasure to welcome our new midwives through this connection with the university. We are proud to support our midwives to deliver high quality care, enhance their job satisfaction and increase the retention of midwives within the Trust.

“Being available on shifts to assist and support our new midwives clinically helps to ease that daunting transition from being a student to a qualified midwife. The role of preceptorship support midwife is new to the Trust, but it has proven to be invaluable for providing additional learning opportunities alongside the one to one support available for those that need and request it.”

Pippa Webb, Midwifery Programme Lead at the University of Lincoln, said: “The University of Lincoln would like to congratulate our first ever cohort of Midwifery students to graduate from the university. It has been a privilege and a pleasure to support the students over the last three years. They have worked so hard and have shown great levels of resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We wish them well for their future careers and we look forward to supporting many more future cohorts of midwifery students at the University of Lincoln.”

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