Joslin Thomas delivers baby girl on International Day of the Midwife
New mum Kiara Fuller will forever remember the day her beautiful baby girl was born, coinciding with International Day of the Midwife.
Northern Territory
Don't miss out on the headlines from Northern Territory. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Joslin Thomas said delivering Territory children was a chance to empower and support women and always involved a “little bit of an adrenaline rush”.
The registered midwife of five years delivered the Fuller family’s 2.495kg healthy baby girl on International Day of the Midwife on Friday.
“It’s an amazing experience, it doesn’t ever get old,” Ms Thomas said.
“She had her partner there, and her mum there, and then her dad came in very quickly afterwards, and everybody’s crying and everybody’s just really excited.”
New mum Kiara Fuller beamed at her daughter – who was born a month early – as Ms Thomas helped swaddle her in a pink knitted blanket.
The parents’ room of the Royal Darwin Hospital maternity ward was filled with quiet joy as Ms Fuller settled on the couch beside partner Kaiden, the newest addition of their family cradled in her lap.
She said she had yet to settle on a name for her healthy bub but had been considering names such as Amirah and Kalilah.
“It’s the most amazing thing you’ll ever experience in life, I think,” Ms Fuller said.
“I’m so proud, especially to finally see her after eight months of being inside me.”
Ms Thomas said International Day of the Midwife was a chance to celebrate her peers, recognise their hard work and reflect on the important roles they play.
“I’ve always had an interest in women’s health and I recognised that (midwifery) was an area that women can be quite vulnerable in, and if they can help someone, that’s supportive and empowering and helping to enable them to achieve what they want to,” she said.
“That’s a really positive thing you can do for women.”
The team of Territory midwives celebrated their day in the spotlight with a morning tea.
Ms Thomas said one of the highlights of her role was developing relationships with the women she supported.
“It’s an incredibly special and intimate role to be in,” she said.
Ms Thomas is one of about 450 midwives in the NT who deliver about 3200 bubs a year.
Midwives make up 38 per cent of the Territory’s health workforce of about 3000 full-time equivalent employees.
Chief Minister and Health Minister Natasha Fyles said NT midwives’ work was valued and needed, and thanked them for their efforts.
“You are there in a family’s most special and treasured time, providing excellent care, assurance and comfort,” she said.
More Coverage
Originally published as Joslin Thomas delivers baby girl on International Day of the Midwife
‘Like family’: US commander thanks Darwin as Marines pack up
As thousands of Marines return home following their seven-month deployment to Darwin, a senior American commander has thanked Territorians for treating his troops “like family”.
Corrections staff believe rioting ‘imminent’ amid emergency flights
The correctional tinderbox is on the verge of turning into a roaring fire, with a walk off the job now a live possibility amid claims 35 women inmates charter flown to Darwin will have to be housed in a library or workshop.