International Day of the Midwife is Sunday 5 May and will be celebrated at the Hospital on Monday 6 May. The theme for this annual celebration is “Midwives: defenders of women’s rights”.
"Midwives are innovative professionals who contribute hugely to the healthcare and wellbeing of whānua in our community” says Chris Mellon, Director of Midwifery at Hutt Valley District Health Board. “They work extremely hard and I can’t thank them enough each and every day for all their efforts.”
International Nurses Day is Sunday 12 May and the theme for this year is “Nurses: A voice to lead - Health for All”.
“Nurses, like our midwives, are an integral part of our healthcare teams and it’s important to acknowledge the contribution all of them make. Their care and commitment to providing the best care possible makes a difference in the lives of so many people and their families,” says Chris Kerr, Director of Nursing at Hutt Valley District Health Boards.
“Nursing at its best – Tepanikiri pai o ngaa neehi – is key to supporting people to live well, be cared for in our communities and delivering shorter, safer and smooth care,” says Chris.
Over 1500 nurses and midwives work in the Hutt Valley.
Midwives work either within the hospital or as Lead Maternity Carers (LMCs) in the community. LMCs provide primary maternity care to women by supporting them in their choice to give birth at home or hospital and caring for them and their babies for a number of weeks in the community following birth.
Nurses can be found working in primary healthcare, aged care residential homes, public and private hospitals and in private care.
