Sharon and Irene Hogan “New local midwifery partnership”
After practicing as an LMC midwife in Taranaki for the last 12 years, my husband and I decided to follow our adult children up to the Auckland area. Trying to decide where I wanted to live and work, I visited the primary maternity units within an hour or 2 of Auckland and was very impressed with the Helensville Birthing Centre. Research validates that for healthy women, birthing in primary maternity units or at home are the best places for babies to be born. There are fewer interventions, equivalent health outcomes for both the mothers and the babies and the mothers perceive their birth experiences as much more positive and empowering.
In my role as a midwife I try, when appropriate, to keep birth the normal life event that it is. Having trained as a midwife in New York City and experiencing maternity care in numerous countries, I have enough perspective to say that Helensville’s Birthing Centre is one of the best in the world. After my first visit to the unit, I realized that this is where I wanted to practice. Shortly afterwards, I contacted Irene Hogan to see if she would be interested in being my midwifery partner and lucky for me, she was delighted with the prospect. We both enjoy being midwives and want to help families bring their babies into the world in loving, respectful ways.
In addition to assisting women to birth at the Helensville Birthing Centre, we support women with homebirths and when birth needs to occur in a hospital due to complications or concerns, at Waitakere and North Shore Hospitals. Usually, after a hospital birth, the mother and baby can transfer back to the Helensville Birthing Centre for their postnatal care. One of the nice things about the Helensville Birthing Centre is that Dads are welcome to stay.
I have a clinic in my home in Parakai and am doing visits there as well as at women’s homes. I find it rewarding and have developed a particular interest in taking care of women who have previously experienced birth as traumatic. A ‘good birth’ can be very healing. I also enjoy taking care of teenagers and having lived in both Tonga and Cambodia, I enjoy practicing my Tongan and Khmer when taking care of women from these countries.
Before leaving Taranaki, I produced a video called “Born at Home: New Zealand Dads Advocate for Homebirth.” The video can be watched by going to: http://vimeo.com/sharonrobinsonmidwifeand I encourage anyone interested in birth, whether interested in homebirth or not, to watch it. There is a lot revealed about what helps make birth a truly positive, empowering experience.
If you are interested in meeting with me or having me as your midwife, I am happy to be contacted on: 0272515373 or by email: sharonrobinson.midwife@gmail.com