The Federation of Finnish Midwives has chosen to award all Finnish midwifery teachers with this year’s honour.
“Midwifery teachers are a significant part of midwifery education in Finland. They ensure that midwifery education in Finland is evidence-based and of high quality and meets the needs of customers and working life. Midwifery teachers create the prerequisites for working as a midwife, forming a professional identity, providing professional and safe care as well as the appreciation of the training and the work,” the Federation writes in its bulletin.
Midwifery is one of the most popular fields of study in the healthcare field, and the number of people applying to the training as their first choice exceeds the number of available places each year. Midwifery training is one of the most comprehensive qualifications in the healthcare sector with 270 credits studied over the course of 4.5 years. Midwifery education is provided in eight educational institutions around Finland.
Next year, midwifery will have been taught in Finland for 210 years. Finland has a long history of and a special relationship with training midwives, thanks to the first midwifery school being founded in Turku in 1816. Midwifery was the first professional qualification intended for women.
Midwifery teachers defend training
According to the Federation’s bulletin, midwifery teachers can also be credited with standing up for midwifery training.
Midwifery training is currently being renewed in accordance with the Government Programme under Prime Minister Petteri Orpo by removing the double degree structure of the qualification. Updates to the EU directive on the recognition of professional qualifications, which governs midwifery training, are also under review.
Through their national network, midwifery teachers have been active in highlighting viewpoints on the proposed changes to midwifery training and the updates to the directive.
The Federation of Finnish Midwives and Tehy have also issued a statement (in Finnish) on making the midwifery qualification a higher academic degree, which would eliminate overlapping degrees on the same level.
Award announced on the International Day of the Midwife
The Federation of Finnish Midwives chooses a midwife of the year among their members each year. The selection is made based on nominations by midwife associations, and the recipient is announced on the International Day of the Midwife on 5 May each year. The midwife of the year is a distinguished developer and professional in the field of midwifery and enjoys the respect of their colleagues.
This year’s award was received by five teachers on behalf of all Finnish midwifery teachers, pictured from left to right: midwifery teachers Sanna-Mari Manninen, Metropolia University of Applied Sciences; Heidi Hölttä, Savonia University of Applied Sciences; Pernilla Stenbäck, Arcada University of Applied Sciences; Raakel Viheroksa, Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK); Milla Hiitti, TAMK.
The Federation of Finnish Midwives is Tehy’s cooperation member organisation.
Text: Lotta Nuotio