Celebrations to honour International Day of the Midwife took place on May 5, with University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) singling out its dedicated team of 213 midwives.

The event celebrates the crucial role of midwives in healthcare, highlighting their work in preventing avoidable deaths during childbirth.

This year's theme, 'Midwives: a vital climate solution', resonated with UHMBT's commitment to its Big Green Plan, aimed at improving sustainability within the Trust.

Amongst organisations promoting this cause is the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), who are advocating for policies that involve midwives in climate action planning.

Sue Stansfield, interim director of Midwifery, UHMBT, said: "Our wonderful midwives make an enormous contribution to the NHS, health and social care, our communities and society in general. International Day of the Midwife is an opportunity to reflect on their achievements.

"We are always delighted to receive feedback such as that listed above from the National Maternity Survey – our midwifery colleagues are clearly making a real difference."

As a part of UHMBT's 7,000-strong workforce, each midwife plays a role in implementing the Big Green Plan's sustainability actions.

The plan, which seeks to educate staff on sustainability, also encourages the use of resources such as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) My Footprint App.

Central to the development of the Big Green Plan is a network of Green Champions, who will promote sustainability within the Trust and their communities.

Moreover, the hospital trust envisages embedding sustainability practices into their organizational structure and supply chains, to ensure compliance with national requirements.

The plan's impact will be gauged through staff, patient and family surveys, alongside evaluating the engagement with the WWF Carbon Calculation tool.

Inspired by the International Day of the Midwife theme, UHMBT's Big Green Plan aims to solidify a strong sustainability foundation for future organizational improvements.

Furthermore, midwives embody the essence of culturally sensitive care providers and community leaders, and play a crucial role during crises.

Engagement with the event, celebrated locally and virtually worldwide, was encouraged through UHMBT's social media platforms using #IDM2024 #MidwivesAndClimate.