Paula, who has been a Midwife for eight years, after switching from a teaching career, joined the Perinatal Pelvic Health Service (PPHS) across the Black Country Local Maternity and Neonatal System (LMNS) last month.

The service is hosted by The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust.

“Being a Midwife is my dream job – to play a part in such a significant time in a woman’s life and support her and her family is a real privilege and something I hold very dear,” she said.

“And to move into a more specialised area of care and support, where I can have some influence on women’s lives makes me feel proud.

“Pelvic health issues unfortunately remain a topic that just isn’t talked about. There’s feelings of embarrassment, shame and anxiety and these significantly impact quality of life. We often hear the phrase “Don’t suffer in silence” and this couldn’t be more important.”

Paula, who trained at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust and worked at Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust during her Midwifery career, will support the service across the whole of the Black Country – including Dudley and Wolverhampton. Working with Ruth Hopper, Advanced Practitioner Physiotherapist, and Clinical Lead for the PPHS, the pair’s main focus will be on education and empowerment along with the importance of preventative measures.

Pelvic health is focused on the management of the bladder, bowel and reproductive organs and plays an important role in physical, mental, social, and sexual wellbeing. During pregnancy, and after birth, problems can occur with pelvic health and these may include bladder urgency and frequency, bladder or bowel incontinence, prolapses, third or fourth-degree tears and pelvic pain.

Problems can also follow gynaecological surgery or trauma.

“We want to raise awareness of the condition in our communities and amongst our own healthcare colleagues, letting women know there is support as well as how they can access this,” added Paula.

“For me, women need to know they will be treated with respect and listened to and that the issues they’re experiencing are not the norm, not something they simply have to put up with. We also have a lot of work to do with some of our ethnic minority groups as there is even greater reluctance to discuss anything associated with sexual health.

“We have a big to do list but I am really enjoying the role and working with someone as passionate as Ruth – together we make a determined team!”