Student Midwife Voices: Reflections from the RCM Student Midwife Forum
This is the third blog in a series written by the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) on the importance of midwifery associations engaging student. This time, Nic Ferguson, a newly qualified midwife and outgoing Chair of the RCM Student Midwife Forum (SMF), shares her reflections on being an active student member of the RCM and the value of student engagement in shaping the profession. In her own words, Nic reflects on the realities of student life and what active involvement in the RCM has meant to her:
Being a student midwife is incredibly challenging, I applaud anyone who manages to balance academic pressures, deadlines, family life, learning new skills in a new environment and anyone who has had to make the difficult decision to step away from a midwifery course. Being a student midwife is an intense, wonderful, heart-breaking rollercoaster and you never know what each day is going to hold. Many of the students around me get through this course one day at a time, trying to break down the mammoth number of tasks, e-learning modules, clinical placements and workload into smaller, more manageable chunks. People often ask me: “what is it really like to be a student midwife?” and the truth is supporting women, gender diverse people and their families at such a unique and special time in their lives’ is amazing, nothing can beat it professionally for me.
The RCM is an organisation which values the voice of student midwives, from active networks which give students a voice on local and national issues of importance to midwifery students, to the elected student representatives who sit on the student midwife forum (SMF) representing the views of students across the country. It is clear to me that the RCM has valued the student voice from day one of my journey to become a midwife and that act of simply listening to each other and having difficult, nuanced conversations are where the seeds of change are planted for improving cultures in maternity services. Although students cannot access the benefits of the trade union side of the RCM, there is a wealth of professional resources that can be accessed for the small monthly fee (less than a cup of coffee in today’s market!) and plenty of great opportunities for networking and relationship building which will get your midwifery career off to the best start.
Personally, I have been sitting on the SMF representing Scotland for the last two years and I currently have the privilege to chair an amazing group of student midwives who are real activists and should give us all hope for the future of midwifery, they continue to inspire me every day. This opportunity has given me support to have work published in MIDIRs, the quarterly midwifery digest, as well as taking to the main stage as the RCM conference in Liverpool to discuss the importance of compassionate leadership from a student perspective. Most importantly to me, I have also been given the opportunity to explore Equality, Diversity and Inclusion issues and share my passion for creating a more diverse, fair and kind culture for minority groups who need to access perinatal care. Working as part of the SMF has been a unique and thoroughly rewarding aspect of my student midwife journey and as my elected term comes to an end and I look towards qualifying and transitioning to a newly qualified practitioner.
I’d like to leave you with a few of my hopes for the future, I hope that midwifery continues to be open to change and to be able to look inwards to find the resolve to provide the care we all are so incredibly passionate about. I hope that political will and determination will continue to support the NHS and enable it to achieve its goal of kind, dignified, free care for all those who need it. I hope society continues to move towards a more tolerant, accepting place where everyone is free to be themselves and I hope the RCM continues to advocate for student midwives, maternity support workers, midwives and most importantly all those who need midwifery care.
Nic’s reflections highlight the immense value of student engagement within the RCM; from the opportunities for professional development to the importance of student voices in shaping the future of midwifery. Her experience on the Student Midwife Forum showcases the power of advocacy, leadership and creating inclusive spaces.
The next blog in this series will highlight student networking through a new RCM initiative that connects midwifery societies in universities across the UK.
