Ask the Midwife over Zoom
As we have faced up to the challenge of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, our amazing teams have had to come up with new ways of delivering our services to the same excellent standard we are used to, while also making sure our children, women, families and staff are kept safe.
Ambitious maternity teams across the Birmingham and Solihull-wide Local Maternity System, coordinated by the Birmingham and Solihull United Maternity and Newborn Partnership (BUMP) have paved the way forward by setting up innovative Zoom video chats for expectant mothers.
The free virtual sessions provide pregnant women across Birmingham and Solihull with the opportunity to ask consultant midwives from Birmingham Women’s Hospital and University Hospitals Birmingham any questions they may have in relation to their pregnancy, childbirth, changes to their care, what to expect when going into hospital during the pandemic and more.
Louisa Davidson, a Consultant Midwife for Birmingham Women’s Hospital who has helped host several of the virtual sessions, said: “The Ask the Midwife sessions were set up by the local maternity system while the coronavirus pandemic was at its peak to help communicate the changes being made to maternity services to maintain expectant mums’ safety.
“There were lots of changes causing anxiety and we were worried women might not be as keen to attend hospital, so we wanted to try different ways to reach them.
“As we were limiting face to face contact, we came up with the idea of doing Zoom virtual sessions where women could join and submit their questions from the comfort of their own home.”
The sessions, which have been well received by local mums-to-be, have also included a focus on looking after your mental health and wellbeing during pregnancy, and being at home with your baby.
Louisa added: “For a lot of ladies they might be nervous about being in person or may have transport issues, whereas these sessions are accessible, easy to join from the comfort of your own home and are led by our ladies rather than by us.
“It has gone great so far and is something we hope we can continue to develop.”
Ask the Midwife sessions are held on the last Tuesday of every month, 10.30am - 11.30am and can be accessed via https://bit.ly/ATMbsol