The ACM Midwifery Awards are an annual showcase of exemplary midwives. This year ACM awarded a Midwife of the Year, Student Midwife of the Year and Maternity Service of the Year who all demonstrated exceptional midwifery care. Congratulations to our award winners.
Midwife of the Year- Melina Connors
Melina Connors has been highlighting the importance of First Nations maternal and infant health at state, national and international platforms and advocates to ensure all models are employing First Nations midwives to increase engagement for First Nations women. Melina has previously worked as an Aboriginal Liaison Officer and Clinical Midwife in the private sector and has worked as a clinical midwifery consultant in QLD Health’s Growing Deadly Families Strategy for the past 18 months. She has had significant success in maintaining codesign relationships across sectors and is mentoring and promoting the midwifery profession within her employment.
“With the support of the Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer in Queensland, I’m proud to be working on the Growing Deadly Families strategy so that we can have culturally safe maternity care for all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women in Queensland.” – Melina Connors, QLD Health
Student Midwife of the Year- Narelle Brown
Third year Bachelor of Midwifery student Narelle Brown is a proud descendent of the Gundungurra and Yuin people. As an Aboriginal woman, Narelle has a strong passion and drive to support other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women to provide the best possible experience of childbearing. She has shown a deep commitment to midwifery during her three years at University of Technology Sydney and Royal Hospital for Women in NSW.
Maternity Service of the Year- North Metropolitan Health Service Midwifery Graduate Program
This midwifery graduate program in Western Australia offers outstanding opportunities for newly qualified midwives to experience a wide scope of clinical practice opportunities and gain exposure to the full gambit of career pathways across women’s health continuum. Placements in a variety of units ensure the Women and Newborn Health Service is growing a workforce capable of meeting consumer need. Innovative programming to address the national midwifery workforce shortages has seen this this dynamic program more than double its intake from 24 graduates in 2019, to 60 in 2023.
“The team is honoured and delighted to receive recognition of this groundbreaking graduate program which is having a real impact supporting midwives as they start their career and nurturing them to remain in this wonderful profession.” – Jodie Atkinson, Graduate Midwife Program Coordinator, North Metropolitan Health Service
Award winners were celebrated at a Gala Dinner Awards Presentation at the Adelaide Oval on Wednesday 13th September.