Mark International Day of Midwife joy

Across NSW, midwives including Bankstown Hospital’s Stina Remler-Jensen, support the birth of almost 100,000 babies each year.
At the centre of celebrations on International Day of the Midwife (May 5) earlier this month, these health professionals put women at the centre of care and at the heart of every decision.
Stina has been a midwife for 12 years, based in Bankstown for 18 months and at Canterbury Hospital prior to that.
Loving her job, she said she couldn’t imagine doing anything else.
“Becoming a midwife was always something I planned to do, I never wanted to be a nurse but feel passionate about looking after women having such a beautiful, positive and rare experience as most now only have a couple of children,” she said.
“There are some women who need round-the-clock monitoring if there are complications such as gestational diabetes and this is an area which is on the rise due to higher rates of obesity, with others genetically at risk due to ethnicity.”
Stina said she was very proud to be a part of the wonderful Bankstown team, with the hospital having the highest vaginal birth rate in Sydney.
“Our aim is always for a normal birth which is healthier for mum and bub,” she said.
“Delivering a child into the world is a privilege for which I’m very grateful and would encourage others to join the profession.
“There is the three-year midwifery degree course which I did or if you are a nurse, it’s only a further 12 months of study,” she said.
To find out more: health.nsw.gov.au