Kate Champions Nurses on International Midwives’ Day
In honor of Nursing Now 2020, a global effort to promote and support the nursing profession, the Duchess of Cambridge interviewed midwife Harriet Nayiga for Nursing Times.
According to a press release from Kensington Palace, the interview took place in March, but was published on Nursing Times’ site today, International Day of the Midwife. Kate also selected the cover for Nursing Times’ May issue, per the Duke and Duchess’s Twitter.
Nayiga is the founder and director of Midwife-led Community Transformation (MILCOT), “a charity bridging the gap between midwives and communities in Uganda by focusing on adolescent sexual health,” per Nursing Times.
Kate (virtually) sat down with Nayiga to discuss MILCOT and the impact of her profession. The pair also talked about the often dangerous conditions Ugandan women give birth in. “You find many women accidentally delivering at home and others on the way to hospital because of the long distance involved,” Nayiga said. “These are the populations who face grave discrimination, so they tend to go to the hospital late, after complications have already emerged,” she added.
“For these marginalised populations, to have someone to talk to, to have someone in their lives who understands what they’re going through, and who can help. That is what they need,” Nayiga told the Duchess. “As a midwife I need to be close, so that they speak to me, so that I listen to their concerns.”
The May edition of @NursingTimes is a special issue, with a cover chosen by The Duchess of Cambridge, that celebrates the work of Nursing Now.
Read The Duchess's interview with Harriet here: https://t.co/6HR08629YU pic.twitter.com/koWsL4ol9G— The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) May 5, 2021
Nayiga and her team work on a volunteer basis. Their already difficult jobs are complicated by a lack of both resources and manpower. Without a car, Nayiga told Kate she has to walk to villages where she works. “I struggle a lot, however, I love what I do.” Nayiga said. “At MILCOT, we are helping nurses and midwives to boost their confidence and resilience to lead in their health facilities, but also to go ahead so they can be at decision and policy making tables.”
The midwife explained that the coronavirus pandemic has intensified the pressures of the job, saying “you feel that you are also at risk and you also need care. You have a family, friends and you’re also worried about how they are, but yet you have to go and serve others.”
The Duchess expressed her admiration for Nayiga and for all nurses and midwives, telling Nayiga, “hopefully one day I can come and see your amazing work first-hand.”
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