International Day of the Midwife: Wigan hospital worker shares her experiences caring for mums and babies

The annual event, which falls on Sunday, recognises, celebrates and shows gratitude to midwives all over the world for their service to healthcare.

There are 1,534 midwives working in Greater Manchester, caring for expecting mothers and helping to safely deliver more than 34,000 babies a year.

In the last 18 months, 55 of those midwives have been recruited from overseas, including Fataneh Hakimifard, who is the first midwife at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WWL) to be recruited internationally.

Fataneh is originally from Iran and has been a qualified midwife for 10 years.

She said: “I have always had an interest in biology and the more I learnt, the more I became interested in the labour and delivery process. I wanted a job that made a difference and brings people happiness. That’s why I chose to become a midwife.”

She moved to India in 2017, where she worked as a volunteer midwife at a hospital for two years, before a friend told her about the opportunity to apply for a role in the UK with the NHS.

She said: “I have always been someone who wants to travel, explore and see new things. I applied to be a midwife for the NHS in 2022. I felt excited about the prospect of working the UK, because the reputation of the NHS is known worldwide, although I was nervous about the application process.”

Like all midwives recruited from overseas, Fataneh went through an extensive induction and training period to equip her for practice in the UK.

Once in the UK, midwives must take written and practical exams to allow them to join the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

Fataneh then moved to Wigan to complete a 12-month, personalised programme with WWL, which was designed to help her translate her knowledge into everyday practice, grow in confidence and understand how to apply national standards of practice and behaviours in day-to-day roles.

She said: “Working for the NHS gives me great opportunities to develop my skills in different areas of midwifery. I have loved my time here. The thing I enjoy most is that I get to be part of the most special moment in someone’s life. I love supporting women and families throughout their entire delivery journey.”

Pastoral support is given to the midwives at the hospitals, such as help setting up a new bank account, securing accommodation and supporting them to integrate into their new community.

Fataneh said: “I received such a warm welcome from my colleagues at WWL when I joined. I was so happy to be joining the NHS, but obviously there was a lot to adjust to, with moving to a new country and tackling the language barrier. Everyone has been amazing though and given me lots of support with my studying, in caring for the expecting mothers, as well as helping me outside of work to feel more settled in my new home.”