Bereavement Midwife

**North Middlesex Maternity**: "A career in Midwifery, not just a job.” We are looking for a dedicated midwife who will provide support and expertise to the families in our service who have experienced pregnancy loss, and to the staff who will be taking care of them Where will your career take you next? The role will expect the post holder to work in the team of bereavement midwives, be a supportive clinical presence to ensure the best service possible for the women, birthing people and their families who have experienced any type of bereavement during their maternity journey. This will include working within the MDT to provide excellent care at the point of bereavement and in the period afterwards, and also provide specialist, personalized care for any subsequent pregnancies. This is a clinically based role, the post holder will be expected to be a point of information and expertise, providing guidance on any issues relating to pregnancy loss or bereavement and will need to have oversight of all related processes and procedures. Day to day, the Bereavement Midwives will support women and families postnatally, offer expert information regarding postmortem investigations and complete postmortem consent, Coronial reviews, registration and funerals. The role includes responsibility for processes and procedures relating to bereavement including audit, guidelines, data collection, completion of paperwork and correct processing of specimens. The postholder will be involved in providing a 7-day bereavement service as per Ockenden recommendations and will be expected to work flexibly including weekend s. **Duties and Responsibilities**: Lead and support staff, setting standards of care in the provision of information and practical advice to parents who have suffered the loss of their baby through miscarriage, termination for abnormalities, stillbirth, neonatal or Sudden Unexpected Infant Death Syndrome. Provide expert support and facilitation of staff in the provision of information. care, support and practical advice to women/birthing people with confirmed fetal abnormality, who choose to terminate their pregnancy and to those who choose to continue their pregnancy including co-ordinating palliative care if this is appropriate. Be the named lead and co-ordinator for women/birthing people, families and staff with regards to information relating to pregnancy loss. Be able to assess each individual case and exercise sound judgement when providing personalized care and support for parents. **Build close liaisons with external agencies such as**: - The Registrar of Birth and Deaths The Coroner Local GP’s Hospital Chaplaincy Local crematorium and cemetery Funeral directors Mortuary staff SANDS (National Stillbirth & Neonatal Death Support Group) Ensure the coordination of quality bereavement care, to the highest standard, is maintained throughout the care pathway. The Bereavement Midwife will be responsible for providing support with the national standardised Perinatal Mortality Review Tool (PMRT) and will lead on the core principles of the National Bereavement Care pathway. **Collect data for MBRRACE-UK**: Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK and feedback reports and relevant findings to key groups and implement service delivery changes as required. Provide expert advice and support to staff who are themselves supporting parents through the practicalities of childbirth when faced with the addition of unexpected pregnancy loss. Provide expert advice to staff and bereaved parents regarding registration of their babies’ birth and death and making funeral arrangements along with ensuring all relevant documentation is appropriately completed. Being familiar with all the policies and protocols relevant to care of parents whose baby dies before, during or shortly after birth. Liaises on a regular basis with all members of the multi-disciplinary team to ensure the timely delivery of prescribed client care and produce guidelines and protocols that reflect our current practice. Advises regarding current legislation relating to pregnancy loss. Communicates regularly with staff, patients and their relatives to promote and maintain a high standard of bereavement care, recognising equity and diversity. Ensures that parents are offered appropriate support literature such as the SANDS booklets for parents. Regularly communicates complex, sensitive and distressing information to mothers and their families, whilst promoting respect, privacy and dignity in accordance with Trust’s Policy. Promoting good communication between all relevant hospital departments and with primary care staff. Demonstrates a high level of commitment to research, audit and education in the clinical area, developing education programmes to inform all staff within the multi-disciplinary team of current best practice on bereavement care. Uses audit to inform practice and to demonstrate service user satisfaction. U