Award just the ticket for midwife

Photo / Northern Advocate

The traditional Maori approach to pregnancy is different from the Pakeha way, say midwives, which is why special groups represent the country's 185 specialist Maori midwives.

Biddy Sheehan, a midwife of Ngai Tahu descent, said Maori women came from a different world view, including being so relaxed about pregnancy that they sometimes might not bother turning up for appointments.

Many also had different expectations about the roles and presence of whanau in childbirth, and traditions around burying the afterbirth.

Sheehan works in Ashburton for Christchurch-based organisation Maori Midwifery Roopu, which has received a Cathay Pacific High-Flyer Award in association with the Herald on Sunday.

The award will fund travel for Sheehan, 41, to attend an international conference in Durban in June, where she will meet other midwives to share ideas and discuss up-to-date research.