Maternity Support Worker

Overview

JOB SUMMARY:

Maternity Support Workers assist with caring for women, babies and their families throughout their maternity journey, working under supervision and within agreed guidelines and protocols when providing care to women and their families. They are expected to hold a Care Certificate and demonstrate full compliance with the competencies of Band 2 MSW. Maternity Support Workers use additional skills within focused aspects of service delivery to enhance the service offered to women and their families;

they work alongside, but under the guidance of practitioners at all levels from across the multidisciplinary team including obstetricians, midwives, ultrasonographers, physiotherapists and advanced nurse practitioners. You require knowledge of facts, principles, processes and general concepts in a field of work.

Carry out a wider range of duties and will have more responsibility, with guidance and supervision available.

• Create effective and supportive relationships with women and their families to enhance the provision of personalised and safe woman-centred care. Proactively engages with patients and others to build and maintain positive relationships. Ensure all women and babies’ requirements are met with respect, privacy, dignity, sensitivity, empathy and recognising diversity at all times.
• Provide good quality personalised care in accordance with agreed local and national standards.
• Support the adaptation to parenthood.
• Understand and gain valid consent prior to action or providing care. Document this promptly and clearly. Understand the MSW’s scope of practice and work within the limits of own competence and authority.
• Recognise changes in either mother or baby’s condition and report concerns to the midwife, including concerns expressed by the women or their families. Ensure own clinical practice is safe and appropriate.
• Assist in the implementation of direct clinical care, performing a range of relevant clinical skills.
• Act within the limits of your competence and authority and adhere to local protocols and procedures.
• Develop your own knowledge and practice, including reflecting on practice and taking opportunities to improve and apply learning in the workplace.
• Make use of supervision; participate in regular supervision in line with local guidelines.

We operate from three main hospitals—Furness General Hospital (FGH) in Barrow, the Royal Lancaster Infirmary (RLI), and Westmorland General Hospital (WGH) in Kendal, as well as a number of community healthcare premises including Millom Hospital and GP Practice, Queen Victoria Hospital in Morecambe, and Ulverston Community Health Centre.

FGH and the RLI have a range of General Hospital services, with full Emergency Departments, Critical/Coronary Care units and various Consultant-led services. WGH provides a range of General Hospital services, together with an Urgent Treatment Centre, to help with a range of non-life threatening conditions such as broken bones and minor illnesses. All three main hospitals provide a range of planned care including outpatients, diagnostics, therapies, day-case and inpatient surgery.

In addition, a range of local outreach services and diagnostics are provided from community facilities across Morecambe Bay.