Who works on a labour ward?
If you go to a labour warden/delivery suite in your pregnancy and birth, you may notice it can be a busy place with lots of different staff members.
Every hospital will have different coloured uniforms for each role so it is sometimes difficult to tell just from the colour a person wears.
Staff members should wear badges with their names and role easily visible, and always introduce themselves by name and role when they meet you. You should challenge a staff member not wearing a badge and ask them their role if unsure.
Midwives
On a labour ward, you will be looked after by a midwife. If you are in active labour, you should have a midwife assigned to you that is looking after only you (known as 1:1/one to one care).
Midwives in the NHS work in a ‘band’ system that usually shows how senior a midwife is. Often, they will wear a lighter colour uniform when more junior and a darker colour when more senior but not all hospitals do this.
Band 5: Midwife. All midwives start at a band 5 when they qualify. They have completed a strict set of goals and delivered at least 40 babies independently as a student to achieve this.
Band 6: Senior Midwife. After at least 18-24 months of a preceptorship (training on the job to learn skills not able to be learnt as a student) a midwife will progress to band 6. They may be in charge of a ward area, or start to specialise in certain skills. Most midwives will be band 6 throughout their career.
Band 7: Specialist Midwife. Some midwives will go on to specialise or become more expert in a certain area. Perhaps they co-ordinate (look after) the whole labour ward, or know a lot about mental health or diabetes, or manage a team.
Doctors
Depending on the maternity unit, there will be different levels of doctors present on a labour ward.
Junior doctor. Also known as foundation doctors (FY1/FY2) or Senior House Officers (SHO) these are doctors in the first half of their training after qualifying. This can last up to five years. Junior doctors often visit the wards, and begin to become more involved in the labour ward care, but may be accompanied by a registrar.
Registrar. This is a doctor in the second half of their training which lasts 3-7 years. They can practice independently, and may often be the most senior doctor on the labour ward. They do not need a consultant to perform deliveries but may ask for help if they need it.
Consultant. This is the most senior level of doctor. If you have a high risk pregnancy you will get assigned to a named consultant and have appointments with them during your pregnancy. However, the consultant on the labour ward may not be your own as the consultants take it in turns to work on the labour ward. New reports recommend women on the labour ward are seen by a consultant every day.
All doctors underneath a consultant are ‘in training’ even if they have been qualified for many years.
Health Care Assistants (HCA)/Midwifery Support Workers (MSW)
These are healthcare professionals that help in a many different ways, depending on their training. They may assist with deliveries, weigh/dress babies, help with feeding baby, help the midwives with labour cares, help make sure the patients are fed, clean and comfortable and much more.
Students
You may see midwifery students and medical students. They are often very helpful and can help with emotional support and answering questions. They must ask for your permission before looking after you and before doing any procedures and will always be supervised. You can ask for no students to be present in your labour and delivery if you would prefer.
Other staff
You may also see other very important staff while on the ward, but who may not be directly involved with caring for you. This could include cleaners, catering staff, porters (who make sure people and crucial items are transported to where they are needed), pharmacists, managers, ward clerks, and matrons (who have a nursing or midwifery background but now help run the departments).
