jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people
  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Career Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • Recruiters
  • Your Account

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

career-advice.jobs.ac.uk

Secondary Sidebar

jobs.ac.uk Career Advice

  • CV and Cover Letter Advice
    • CV Tips
    • Free CV Templates
    • Cover Letters
    • Personal Profiles
    • CV Resources
  • Jobseeking and Interview Tips
    • Jobseeking Tips
    • Academic Interviews
    • Professional Interviews
    • Jobseeking and Interview Resources
  • Career Development
    • Academic Careers
    • Research Careers
    • Professional Careers
    • Working in Industry
    • Career Development Resources
    • Global Careers
    • Working From Home
  • Women in Higher Education
  • Resources
    • Academic Case Studies
    • Professional Case Studies
    • Interview questions tool
    • Job Profiles
      • Health and Medical
      • Engineering and Technology
      • Computer Science
      • Physical and Environmental Science
    • Blog
    • Vlogs
  • Webinars
  • Country Profiles
    • Africa
      • Egypt
      • Ghana
      • Kenya
      • Nigeria
      • South
    • Americas
      • Canada
      • United States of America
    • Asia
      • Bahrain
      • Brunei
      • China
      • Hong Kong
      • India
      • Japan
      • Kazakhstan
      • Malaysia
      • Qatar
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Singapore
      • South Korea
      • Turkey
      • United Arab Emirates
    • Europe
      • Belgium
      • Denmark
      • Finland
      • France
      • Germany
      • Ireland
      • Italy
      • Netherlands
      • Norway
      • Russia
      • Spain
      • Sweden
      • Switzerland
      • United Kingdom
    • Oceania
      • Australia
      • New Zealand
  • Studentship Advice
    • PhD
    • Studentship Resources
    • Vlogs
  • Sections
    • CV and Cover Letter Advice
      • CV Tips
      • CV Templates
      • Cover Letters
      • Personal Profiles
      • CV Resources
    • Jobseeking and Interview Tips
      • Jobseeking Tips
      • Academic Interviews
      • Professional Interviews
      • Jobseeking and Interview Resources
    • Career Development
      • Academic Careers
      • Research Careers
      • Professional Careers
      • Working in Industry
      • Career Development Resources
      • Global Careers
    • Resources
      • Academic Case Studies
      • Professional Case Studies
      • Interview questions tool
      • Blog
      • Vlogs
    • Country Profiles
      • Africa
        • Egypt Country Profile
        • Ghana Country Profile
        • Kenya Country Profile
        • Nigeria Country Profile
        • South Africa Country Profile
      • Americas
        • Canada Country Profile
        • United States of America Country Profile
      • Asia
        • Bahrain Country Profile
        • Brunei Country Profile
        • China Country Profile
        • Hong Kong Country Profile
        • India Country Profile
        • Japan Country Profile
        • Kazakhstan Country Profile
        • Malaysia Country Profile
        • Qatar Country Profile
        • Saudi Arabia Country Profile
        • Singapore Country Profile
        • South Korea Country Profile
        • Turkey Country Profile
        • United Arab Emirates Country Profile
      • Europe
        • Belgium Country Profile
        • Denmark Country Profile
        • Finland Country Profile
        • France Country Profile
        • Germany Country Profile
        • Ireland Country Profile
        • Italy Country Profile
        • Netherlands Country Profile
        • Norway Country Profile
        • Russia Country Profile
        • Spain Country Profile
        • Sweden Country Profile
        • Switzerland Country Profile
        • United Kingdom Country Profile
      • Oceania
        • Australia Country profile
        • New Zealand Country Profile
    • Studentship Advice
      • PhD
      • Studentship Resources
      • Vlogs

Senior Lecturer in Midwifery

Senior Lecturer in Midwifery

Laura Abbott: From Independent Midwife To Senior Lecturer in Midwifery.


Laura Abbott

Following 5 years of employment as a Registered General Nurse specialising in intensive care, I trained as a Registered Midwife and worked as an independent midwife. In this role, I was responsible for a group of pregnant women who wanted continuity during their pre-and post-natal experience outside the context of hospitals. It also involved working closely with colleagues and midwives in the NHS to ensure seamless care, should additional maternity involvement be needed. I thoroughly enjoyed my time working independently as a midwife, as I got to know the women really well and played a key role in their lives during their pregnancies, birth and in the postnatal period. I undertook additional qualifications to become a Supervisor of Midwives which led on to a Master’s programme.

During this time, I also did some hourly-paid teaching within the School of Health and Social work at the University of Hertfordshire. I loved teaching in the School, as the environment was very welcoming and supportive. This experience motivated me to pursue a career in academia, as I knew I had an inquisitive mind and loved the thought of having the opportunity to engage in research in my area of expertise. I successfully applied for the post of Lecturer in Midwifery in 2008 when my youngest of three sons became one year’s old. When I started, I was supported to complete a teaching qualification and progressed to Senior Lecturer soon after.

As my passion lied in research, I was encouraged to start a School-funded part-time DHRes in 2012, focusing on the experience of pregnant women in prison. My research looks at what it is like being pregnant in prison; I am exploring the whole experience, not just considering facts and figures, and interviewing women so that their own voices can convey what it is like to be pregnant in an English prison.

Access to participants in my study has been a very complex procedure. I underwent training at the Charity ‘Birth Companions’, an incredibly compassionate and non-judgemental organisation, to be able to support women in prison during pregnancy, labour and their post-natal experiences, which can be very complex for mothers in this context. This experience gave me an understanding of the challenging rule-governed setting I was entering, and the vulnerability of the women, so I was prepared when I applied for ethical approval from the National Office Management Service. During my visits to the prison, I observe the environment and build rapport with the female inmates, but also the staff, as they have been generous in allowing me access and need to know that I am trustworthy and not a security risk. It has been a long and challenging journey. The women in prison really want to talk about the kind of support they are receiving and have a lot to say about their varied experiences. Many of them have had difficult lives and I have been struck by their resilience. I hope to give a voice to an invisible group of women.


Laura Abbott

My School has supported me during my fieldwork, by funding my travel to prisons and making sure I am able to work flexibly. I also received impact funding from the University which covers my travel to conferences: I have been able to present my work to a multidisciplinary audience around the country. I have been invited to deliver a keynote talk at the UNICEF Babyfriendly National conference in November 2016. I have worked with the Charity ‘Birth Companions’ on the publication of a Birth Charter which consists of recommendations to inform Policy on pregnant women in prison: recommendations include references to the right to attend antenatal classes, the requirements for additional nutrients during pregnancy, and entitlement to counselling if the mother is separated from the baby at birth. This work has interest from Offender Management Services and I hope to contribute to future policy with Birth Companions.

I am coming out of the field at the end of this summer, and plan to work temporarily part-time in order to focus on writing up my research. I am also currently in discussion with my line manager about freeing up further time to focus on networking, write up research papers and to start supervising PhD students. Future plans include continuing with my research and establishing a research team with the aim to continue to feed into government Policy and Law to ensure that changes are made to how women, and staff, are supported in the prison setting.


Share this article

Dr Katerina Finnis

Dr Katerina Finnis works at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine as an Athena SWAN Officer. Her primary role is to support the institution and its Faculties in their submissions for Athena SWAN awards which recognise good practice in retaining and promoting female staff and students in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine (STEMM) in Higher Education. Having worked as a Senior Lecturer in English Language and Linguistics, Katerina has a keen interest in issues relating to gender and the workplace: she is committed to supporting all individuals in attaining a work-life balance and achieving their full potential.

Reader Interactions

You may also like:

How can we end plastic pollution?
5 creative career pathways in Academia
What is the difference between a Teaching Fellow and Research Fellow?

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Follow us

Latest Jobs

  • Social Care Fellow, NIHR Nursing and Midwifery

    National Institute of Health and Care Research, University of Leeds

    Location(s): Leeds, London

    Salary: £54,421 - £63,059 pro rata


  • Digital Innovation Lead Curricula and Practice Learning (Nursing & Midwifery)

    Nursing and Midwifery Education, Edge Hill University

    Location(s): Ormskirk

    Salary: £49,841 - £56,048 per annum


  • Senior Lecturer (Teaching Scholarship and Professional Practice) in Midwifery

    School of Health & Life Sciences, Teesside University

    Location(s): Middlesbrough

    Salary: £40,745 - £52,841


  • Clinical Research Assistant

    Nuffield Department of Women’s & Reproductive Health (NDWRH), , University of Oxford

    Location(s): Oxford

    Salary: £28,131 - £33,348 (with a discretionary range up to £36,333) per annum (Grade 5)


  • Lecturer/Senior Lecturer in Midwifery

    FEHHS Health: Midwifery, University of Greenwich

    Location(s): Eltham

    Salary: £36,333 - £52,841 plus £3953 London weighting per annum


  • Professor of Nursing Research/Assistant Director of Nursing (R&D)

    School of Nursing and Paramedic Science / Western Health and Social Care Trust, Ulster University

    Location(s): Derry

    Salary: Competitive


Footer

jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people
  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Career Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility Statement

Copyright © jobs.ac.uk 1998 - 2023

  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Careers Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility
jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people

Copyright © jobs.ac.uk 1998 - 2022