In support of a midwife
Donation protected
My name is Krishinda Powers-Duff and I have been a midwife for over ten years supporting many families, both in the UK and Spain, to have safe, loving, respectful births at home and in hospital. I am a champion for every woman's right to give birth with dignity and humanity, and I have worked tirelessly to bring this type of care to many women and families.
On the 31st of July, 2020, I safely delivered the baby of a mother who, denied a homebirth by her local trust, had chosen to free birth.
Nearing the end of her labour she instinctively knew that she needed extra support and contacted me. I had been her midwife in this pregnancy but was not insured to be her homebirth midwife. She contacted me because she trusted me and she knew I would not turn my back on her. Within the hour of my arrival to her home, I realised her baby was in distress and was required to carry out emergency procedures to deliver her baby and save its life.
Both mother and baby were kept safe and well due to my skill and experience. However, as I was not insured to attend this woman in labour I have been sanctioned for 18 months by my governing body. This means that for the next one and a half years, if not longer, I will be unable to do the work that I have been devoted to for the past ten years of my life.
This harsh judgement will make a devastating impact on my life as in these uncertain times, I have no idea how I will provide for my three children, who are in fulltime education and myself.
With very few options available to me due to the pandemic situation, I have decided to share my experience and ask for help. This help would mean I could still manage to support my family over these months while I work to find another way to use the skills I have developed over the past decade and learn new ones in order to once again be a contributing member of society and continue, in some way, to support; pregnant women, new mothers and families have their babies with dignity and respect.
I am also sharing my story to bring to light the very real crisis that is happening in the maternity services in the UK.
The rights of pregnant, birthing and postnatal women are being stripped away, every day. Obstetric violence is becoming normal in our hospitals, and the choice to birth outside of the NHS has effectively been taken away, as the large majority of independent midwives are no longer allowed to work, due to their insurance being stripped away this year.
This has left a great void, and more and more women are feeling they have very little choice as to the care they are able to receive. Many midwives are also feeling they have little to no choices with regards to the type of care they want to give and the way they want to work.
With this in mind, I intend to give 20% of the money I am able to raise to the Radical Midwives Association and the fund for independent midwives, "Child Birth Choices Matter".
Both of these groups are working to support midwives, like myself, who believe that women and families should have a choice in the care they receive in pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period and should be treated with dignity and respect by midwives who are not overworked, underpaid and disrespected themselves.
I have spent this last decade of my life completely devoted to supporting birthing people and their families to have births based in safety, respect, dignity and love. I am proud of the care I have given and the choices I have made in my career. The choice I made to support this woman in her time of need is not one that I regret because I know that it was the right thing to do. But challenging choices can reap difficult results.
Asking for this kind of support is not an easy thing for me to do at all. Those who know me know that I am a very proud woman who has always carried herself with dignity and professionalism.
I rarely ask for help from others but I give help to those in need with love and grace.
This year has been one of the most challenging and frightening years for me and everyone around the world I am sure. I know we are all struggling to keep our hearts, minds and finances intact as all of our futures seem uncertain. I would never ask for help from those who are also struggling but if you are able to give something it would actually change the course of my life at this moment.
Thank you
Krishinda
On the 31st of July, 2020, I safely delivered the baby of a mother who, denied a homebirth by her local trust, had chosen to free birth.
Nearing the end of her labour she instinctively knew that she needed extra support and contacted me. I had been her midwife in this pregnancy but was not insured to be her homebirth midwife. She contacted me because she trusted me and she knew I would not turn my back on her. Within the hour of my arrival to her home, I realised her baby was in distress and was required to carry out emergency procedures to deliver her baby and save its life.
Both mother and baby were kept safe and well due to my skill and experience. However, as I was not insured to attend this woman in labour I have been sanctioned for 18 months by my governing body. This means that for the next one and a half years, if not longer, I will be unable to do the work that I have been devoted to for the past ten years of my life.
This harsh judgement will make a devastating impact on my life as in these uncertain times, I have no idea how I will provide for my three children, who are in fulltime education and myself.
With very few options available to me due to the pandemic situation, I have decided to share my experience and ask for help. This help would mean I could still manage to support my family over these months while I work to find another way to use the skills I have developed over the past decade and learn new ones in order to once again be a contributing member of society and continue, in some way, to support; pregnant women, new mothers and families have their babies with dignity and respect.
I am also sharing my story to bring to light the very real crisis that is happening in the maternity services in the UK.
The rights of pregnant, birthing and postnatal women are being stripped away, every day. Obstetric violence is becoming normal in our hospitals, and the choice to birth outside of the NHS has effectively been taken away, as the large majority of independent midwives are no longer allowed to work, due to their insurance being stripped away this year.
This has left a great void, and more and more women are feeling they have very little choice as to the care they are able to receive. Many midwives are also feeling they have little to no choices with regards to the type of care they want to give and the way they want to work.
With this in mind, I intend to give 20% of the money I am able to raise to the Radical Midwives Association and the fund for independent midwives, "Child Birth Choices Matter".
Both of these groups are working to support midwives, like myself, who believe that women and families should have a choice in the care they receive in pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period and should be treated with dignity and respect by midwives who are not overworked, underpaid and disrespected themselves.
I have spent this last decade of my life completely devoted to supporting birthing people and their families to have births based in safety, respect, dignity and love. I am proud of the care I have given and the choices I have made in my career. The choice I made to support this woman in her time of need is not one that I regret because I know that it was the right thing to do. But challenging choices can reap difficult results.
Asking for this kind of support is not an easy thing for me to do at all. Those who know me know that I am a very proud woman who has always carried herself with dignity and professionalism.
I rarely ask for help from others but I give help to those in need with love and grace.
This year has been one of the most challenging and frightening years for me and everyone around the world I am sure. I know we are all struggling to keep our hearts, minds and finances intact as all of our futures seem uncertain. I would never ask for help from those who are also struggling but if you are able to give something it would actually change the course of my life at this moment.
Thank you
Krishinda
Organizer
Krishinda Powers-Duff
Organizer
Scotland
