Interview with Melinda – a maternity nurse on top !

One of the unacknowledged dreams of young parents leaving the maternity ward is to take their facilities and nursing staff home with them, and thus find all the expertise and support of specialised and knowledgeable staff.

For some years now, maternity nurses have had the mission of relieving and accompanying these families to make a smooth transition possible…

Qualifications, passion and benevolence are the driving forces behind Melinda, an inspiring young woman that Beeboo is proud to count among its maternity nurses.

Let’s meet this passionate professional!

(Beeboo) What led you to become a maternity nurse?

It’s something I didn’t know until very recently. I knew about nannies, but I didn’t know that maternity nurses existed. In France, we’re still behind in this area, but it exists, so I looked into it (smile).

Because of my professional background, maternity nurse training corresponded perfectly to me.

Being able to accompany and support parents in the post partum period and the development of their baby is something I like to do. We have time to listen, to share our knowledge and experience. The maternity stay is short and becoming a parent is not something you learn overnight.

(Beeboo) What is your background?

I studied in France, I did 3 years of nursing studies to obtain my diploma. My goal was already to work with children, it was non-negotiable for me (laughs).

After graduation I worked at the necker hospital in Paris, in general paediatrics on the infant side (0-3 years). We mainly had babies. I learned a lot from my colleagues.

I stayed there for about two and a half years.

I decided to go back to school to further my knowledge and to get my diploma as a childcare nurse. During this training, I did a lot of interesting internships and it was the one in the maternity ward where I felt I belonged.

Accompanying parents, supporting them, informing them, so that they can go home serenely was what I preferred to do.

I was determined to look for a job in this field, and then an opportunity came up. Some parents I had met in Paris, who had had a traumatic experience with their first child, contacted me to see if I would be interested in coming to look after their 4-month-old baby boy full-time. I took the opportunity. I stayed with them for four and a half years. It was an incredible experience.

After that, I wanted to change and become a self-employed perinatal coach. So I did several training courses on perinatal care to deepen and enrich my knowledge and skills.

Today I accompany parents with the Beeboo agency for short/medium term needs.

(Beeboo) What is the role of a maternity nurse?

The role of the maternity nurse is to accompany and support the parents, to take care of the mother who has just given birth and the baby.

Becoming a parent is an important step and involves a lot of upheaval, whether it is the first or third child. You have to find yourself and find a new family balance.

She guides parents on the road to parenthood. She informs them, supports them and accompanies them with kindness. It is important to know that we are not here to impose anything. We have knowledge through our diplomas/training and experience, but the parents are the only ones who decide what they want to do or not do with their child, and that is perfectly acceptable. So we have to be able to adapt and make compromises to adapt our knowledge and practices to those of the parents.

She also has a responsibility to ensure that all the baby’s needs are met.

She also ensures that the baby-parent bond is well established and can suggest ways to encourage it (skin-to-skin, involving the parent if he or she is withdrawn, massage).

(Beeboo) Which families do you work with the most? (Young couple with 1 child, Families with several children, single parent family)

I most often deal with couples with one child

(Beeboo) What are the main demands of the families?

The families expect the maternity nurse to accompany them with kindness and a professional eye. They are looking for someone they can trust to look after their baby. Mutual trust, communication and kindness are the three main pillars for a good support and a harmonious relationship with the family and the maternity nurse. Some parents want to set a rhythm for their baby. It is important to know that the first three months cannot, strictly speaking, be rhythmic.

On the other hand, rituals can already be put in place so that the baby has habits that reassure him and allow him to understand what is going to happen. For example, by means of the evening ritual (bath-dinner-story) indicating that bedtime is coming.

Families also need a relay. The arrival of a child and bringing him up is not easy, on the contrary! (Laughter). Being able to rely on the maternity nurse to look after the baby while the parents are together or with the other children is essential.

In general, parents need to be reassured in their parenting skills and to be surrounded.

(Beeboo) What do you think could be improved in the maternity nurse profession? What is missing for this profession to be or to continue to be the most beautiful profession in the world?

We deserve to be better known and for people to know our role. We are not just nannies to look after a child.

We are qualified professionals who help parents and their babies to thrive.

(BeeBoo) Thank you very much Melinda!

• FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE MATERNITY NURSE JOB : What is a Maternity Nurse? – beeboo (bee-boo.ch)
• TO BOOK YOUR FUTURE MATERNITY NURSE : Book a maternity nurse – beeboo (bee-boo.ch)