Kate, the secret midwife
Duchess pays tribute to maternity staff after two days’ ‘work experience’
THE Duchess of Cambridge has paid tribute to the nation’s community of midwives – after joining them on home visits during a hospital placement last month.
Mother-of-three Kate, 37, today highlights the invaluable work they do in an open letter to mark the forthcoming World Health Organisation’s International Year of the Nurse and Midwife.
Addressing midwives, she writes how important it is to be ‘recognising and celebrating the humbling work that you and your colleagues do day in, day out, to improve the lives of others’.
She says: ‘ You are there for women at their most vulnerable; you witness strength, pain and unimaginable joy on a daily basis. Your work often goes on behind the scenes, and away from the spotlight.’
At the end of November, the duchess spent two days privately undertaking ‘work experience’ at Kingston Hospital maternity unit in south-west London to learn about what it was like to work in frontline maternity care, describing the experience as ‘a privilege’.
Four photographs taken during her time there, newly released by Kensington Palace, show her with a delighted couple and their newborn baby, chatting to staff and posing for a team photo.
Kate also sat in on home birth meetings at the hospital and in patients’ homes, learning about everything from the kit carried by midwives to the practicalities of setting up a birthing pool.
The duchess did not witness or take part in any medical procedures. In tribute to the staff at Kingston Hospital and their colleagues worldwide, Kate writes: ‘Although this was not my first encounter with the care and kindness provided by midwives across the country, it gave me a broader insight into the true impact you have on everybody you help.’
Over the past few years, the duchess has dedicated a significant amount of her work to an ‘Early Years’ project, concentrating on the pivotal period of development between pregnancy and the age of five when children build crucial foundations for life.
Experts believe that experiences during this time can have a direct and significant effect on development later in life and cause issues such as addiction, anti- social behaviour and mental illness.
The duchess says: ‘Your role in supporting this critical phase of development extends far beyond the complicated task of delivering a baby successfully. The help and reassurance you provide for parents to be and parents of newborns is just as crucial. It goes a long way in building parents’ confidence from the start, with lifelong impact on the future happiness of their children.’
Kate also reveals that while working at Kingston Hospital – where about 13 babies are born each day – she shadowed community mid-wifes on their daily rounds and was welcomed in to people’s homes. ‘I was truly touched by the trust that people placed in me, sharing their experiences and voicing their fears openly,’ she says.
She also spent time in hospital clinics and on post-natal wards, experiencing the full range of services on offer at the institution.
The duchess praised the teams she met, saying: ‘No matter the setting, I was continually struck by the compassion that those of you I spent time with showed, and the incredible work ethic you demonstrated on behalf of your entire profession...’
During each of her three pregnancies, the duchess suffered from the debilitating condition Hyperemesis Gravidarum and was hospitalised when expecting Prince George after becoming severely dehydrated. The condition causes severe vomiting and nausea, which can last until the 20th week of pregnancy and even beyond, and leaves sufferers being sick dozens of times a day.
Kate also quotes the founder of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale, the 200th anniversary of whose birth will be celebrated next year. Nightingale once said: ‘I attribute my success to this: I never gave or took an excuse.’
Kate writes: ‘It is that mantra that I have seen time and time again in all of my encounters with you. You don’t ask for praise or for recognition but instead unwaveringly continue your amazing work bringing new life into our world...
‘So as we look ahead to next year, I want to thank you for all that you do. It has been a real privilege learning from you so far, and I look forward to meeting and learning from even more of you in the coming years and decades.’
The Royal College of Midwives – which has the Princess Royal as its patron – welcomed the duchess’s letter and her appreciation for the positive impact they have on the lives of women and babies.
Gill Walton, the RCM’s general secretary, said: ‘We are delighted that the work of midwives and maternity support workers has been recognised in this way by HRH the Duchess of Cambridge.
‘Having spent time with RCM members at Kingston Hospital, she has seen first-hand the positive impact good maternity support can have, not only for mother and baby, but the whole family.’
‘Gave me insight into your impact’