Midwives have a very important role in childbirth. Midwifery is an obstetric job. Although not everyone wants or needs a midwife, they can be crucial to making a mother feel calm, and help a baby make a safe entry into the world. Sometimes a woman’s touch is needed to help ease a pregnancy along and a midwife can be more personal and less intimidating than a doctor. But what exactly are a midwife’s duties?

• A midwife checks up on a woman during her pregnancy and is also there for the delivery. She is involved in keeping the woman calm as well as checking her vitals.

• However, midwives cannot write prescriptions or perform any diagnostic tests except for typical urine tests.

• Midwives encourage different labour techniques like showering, breathing techniques and rocking motions to encourage labour and ease pain. They also encourage eating and drinking during labour. Most doctors don’t do this during labour.

• Although a midwife is like a nurse, she is also like a friend who can reassure the mother and make her feel safe.

• Midwives have access to other professional contacts that can help if something goes wrong or a prescription is needed as they work closely with licensed obstetricians and doctors.

You can look for midwifery jobs and other obstetric jobs in Australia, New Zealand, as well as a range of other countries at Wavelength International, a medical recruitment website. Use their simple Job Search bar and apply “nurse” in profession, “midwife” in specialities and then choose which region you want and whether you’d prefer locum or full time work.