---
name: midwife
description: "Occupational skill for the role 'midwife' (also: community midwife, foetal nurse, neonatal nurse practitioner, consultant midwife, obstetric nurse, intensive care neonatal nurse). Use when the user asks for typical midwife work such as: Educate patients and family members regarding prenatal, intrapartum, postpartum, newborn, or interconception care.; Provide prenatal, intrapartum, postpartum, or newborn care to patients.; Document patients' health histories, symptoms, physical conditions, or other diagnostic information."
---

# Midwife

Midwives assist women in childbirth by providing the necessary support, care and advice during pregnancy, labour and the postpartum period, conduct births and provide care for the new-born. They advise on health, preventive measures, preparation for parenthood, detection of complications in mother and child, accessing of medical care, promoting normal birth and carrying out emergency measures.

## Core workflow

1. Educate patients and family members regarding prenatal, intrapartum, postpartum, newborn, or interconception care.
2. Provide prenatal, intrapartum, postpartum, or newborn care to patients.
3. Document patients' health histories, symptoms, physical conditions, or other diagnostic information.
4. Monitor fetal development by listening to fetal heartbeat, taking external uterine measurements, identifying fetal position, or estimating fetal size and weight.
5. Perform physical examinations by taking vital signs, checking neurological reflexes, examining breasts, or performing pelvic examinations.
6. Consult with or refer patients to appropriate specialists when conditions exceed the scope of practice or expertise.
7. Develop and implement individualized plans for health care management.
8. Document findings of physical examinations.

## How to use this skill

- Read [references/profile.md](references/profile.md) for the occupation profile and scope.
- Consult [references/tasks.md](references/tasks.md) for the full task and activity inventory.
- Check [references/skills.md](references/skills.md) for essential vs. optional competences.
- Check [references/tools.md](references/tools.md) for the software commonly used in this role.
- See [references/ai-skills.md](references/ai-skills.md) — matched external AI agent skills (per-source attribution).

## Key competences (essential)

- accept own accountability
- address problems critically
- adhere to organisational guidelines
- advise on childbirth
- advise on family planning
- advise on pregnancies at risk
- advise on pregnancy
- anaesthetics
- analgesics
- apply context specific clinical competences
- apply organisational techniques
- assess the course of breast-feeding period
- assist on pregnancy abnormality
- care for the new-born infant
- carry out treatment prescribed by doctors

## Hot technologies

- eClinicalWorks EHR software
- Epic Systems
- Microsoft Office software
- Microsoft Excel

---
*Sources: ESCO v1.2.1 (http://data.europa.eu/esco/occupation/95cda6a9-a70a-4a93-9442-11d573cb4a02), O*NET 30.3 (29-1161.00). See manifest.json for licensing/attribution.*