Bedfordshire midwives who have gone above and beyond recognised for outstanding contributions

Two Bedfordshire midwives have been given a prestigious award for going above and beyond.

Michelle Causer and Jo Duke – midwifery graduates from the University’s of Bedfordshire’s faculty of health and social sciences – were awarded the NHS Chief Midwife Officer’s Silver Award.

The pair work passionately to make a difference in the community through their clinical practice, leadership and championing diversity and inclusion.

Michelle, who now works as a perinatal mental health midwife at the Luton and Dunstable University Hospital site said it was ‘overwhelming and humbling’ to receive the award for her work with vulnerable women at Bedford Hospital.

She said: “It is beyond overwhelming and very humbling to have received the award. It is such a privilege to work alongside a fantastic team and with some of our most vulnerable women developing pathways to enable them to have access to specialist services locally as well as always making sure that mental health has parity of esteem with physical health in maternity care.”

Jo, a community midwife, hit the headlines in August last year after undertaking a carbon monoxide monitoring assessment on one of her then-pregnant patients, which led to the detection of a boiler leak in the patient’s home. This early assessment by Jo potentially saved the mother-to-be and her unborn baby’s lives.

Jo said: “My job as a community midwife is hugely rewarding and I enjoy caring for all patients. The carbon monoxide testing is a very small element of the care I provide but crucial in ensuring women and their families are safe. Detection of unsafe levels from old or faulty boilers has occurred on a few occasions and actions have then been taken to minimise risk.”

Amanda Willetts, portfolio lead and principal lecturer for midwifery at the University of Bedfordshire, said: “We are extremely proud to work alongside our midwifery alumni and partners at Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and would like to extend our congratulations to Michelle and Jo for receiving these awards in recognition of their dedication to women, children and their families, and the midwifery profession.”

To find out more about studying midwifery and other healthcare courses at the University of Bedfordshire, visit the school of nursing and health education‘s webpage.