The Annual Student Midwife Conference 2014, ‘Cultural competence within midwifery’, featured lectures from specialists in a variety of fields based across the country.

Students on the three-year course benefited hearing from one of the nation’s key strategy makers, Birte Harlev-Lam, the Head of Maternity and Child services for NHS England, who professed about how the approach midwives implement on the ground level need to reach management level in order to ensure effective care throughout.

The key-note speaker also talked about maternity specifically and how she wants to provide practical strategies to the core staff delivering the care.

Additional lectures throughout the event on Monday, at the Luton campus, also included a talk from Dr Chloe Sharp who spoke about her research into the differences between maternity care in the UK and Poland.

A research fellow at the University, Dr Sharp explained why women originating from Poland, living in Great Britain, want care slightly differently due to their experiences in their homeland.

Mohammed Khodabaccus from the Luton Council of Faiths then talked about cultural humility and combined it with humour and life stories.

Susan Carter, a practice educator midwife from the Luton & Dunstable Hospital, has recently returned from a medical camp in Nepal where a team of doctors and nurses helped women who had long term gynaecological problems.

She spoke next of her experiences in a “very moving and thought provoking” sermon.

Other presentations came from the Royal College of Midwives, as well as from a University of Bedfordshire Senior Lecturer in Adult Nursing who presented her research about humour in the NHS – demonstrating that it was still ok to laugh at work in the correct circumstances.

A midwifery alumnus also spoke about spirituality and faith in the profession.

Alongside lectures there was also a ‘guess the baby lecturer’ competition; a presentation about consanguinity (cousin marriage); as well as various role play scenarios put on by students who looked at ward culture and working relationships.

Carla Ball, Midwifery Lecturer, said: “The day went well and there was a very good turn-out.

“Not only were the lectures thought-provoking, inspirational, and sometimes emotional, but they also encouraged great participation from our students who were enthusiastic and asked many questions throughout.”