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Date
05 May 2020
The International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) has celebrated the work of midwives on 5 May since 1992. Each year, the ICM chooses a theme to motivate its member associations, partners and stakeholders to raise awareness about the status of midwives and the essential care they provide to mothers, their newborns and families.
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This year’s International Day of the Midwife (IDM) theme is ‘midwives with women: celebrate, demonstrate, mobilise, unite – our time is NOW!’
When the ICM chose this year’s theme, they couldn’t have predicted that by 5 May we would be amid the global pandemic COVID-19. During these challenging times, it’s more important than ever to acknowledge the crucial support midwives offer families in even the most difficult of circumstances and celebrate significant events such as IDM.
Celebrating Milestones
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At Nurse & Midwife Support we love to celebrate key milestones. Our achievements unite us, foster team spirit and promote fun and laughter — key ingredients for our wellbeing.
Our team celebrates our monthly professional development day with a cake or a treat — an acknowledgement of gratitude and gesture of kindness. A team member volunteers to bring cake or a treat and we gather to celebrate our achievements. We are continuing the tradition despite physical distancing requirements by sharing virtual treats, stories, and recipes. Alongside the stress we all feel, it is more important than ever to find ways to affirm and appreciate each other. We encourage you to find your own way with your own teams and colleagues — let us know what you come up with!
Just a phone call away
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This year, we can’t travel to be with you as we have for the past three years, but we are still here for you at the other end of the phone. We have remained connected through phone calls, emails, teleconferences, webinars, social media and video meetings. Our whole team feels grateful to have shared your stories, challenges and triumphs.
You have told us incredible and heartfelt stories about how much life has changed for so many.
How you have adapted work, home lives and interactions with those you care for.
You have laughed, cried, hugged your loved ones and washed your hands more than ever.
Many of these stories touched us and made us laugh and cry. Your agility, responsiveness and dedication to providing first class care, no matter, what has humbled us.
We see you and thank you
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On this special day, Nurse & Midwife Support acknowledges the important and vital work that midwives do every day.
We offer admiration and gratitude for the work you do caring for and supporting mothers, newborns and families and each other, often in challenging circumstances.
Your experiences
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Stakeholder Engagement Manager Mark Aitken recently spoke to a Midwifery Unit Manager in regional Victoria and asked how she and her team were. Angela replied in her upbeat voice:
“We are super busy. Coronavirus doesn’t stop babies being born. We’ve adapted work practices, moved wards around, developed new policies and procedures, had lots of training, ordered plenty of personal protective equipment while remembering to have fun, support each other, reflect and celebrate our achievements.”
We discussed the importance of self-care and agreed now more than ever was the time to make self-care a priority.
Our gift to you
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Our gift to you on this significant day is a reminder that YOUR self-care is vitally important because YOUR HEALTH MATTERS
It doesn’t need to be big or complicated, self-care can be as simple as taking a moment to breath.
Here are some support resources that are full of strategies you can try:
Online celebration
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The International Confederation of Midwives has many events planned, including a Facebook Live event to mark #IDM2020 and the experiences of midwives on the frontlines of the Coronavirus pandemic.
Let's celebrate
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Whatever you do to celebrate: enjoy it. Take time to pause, reflect and pat yourself on the back for a job well done. Remember we are all in this together. We are here 24/7 to support YOU.
Nurse & Midwife Support can be contacted from anywhere in Australia:
The service is anonymous, confidential and free.