About five years ago, my DH was working as a nurse in the Accident and Emergency Department at Frankston hospital.

Half the male midwives in Victoria (I kid you not) were actually working in that A&E Department. There were, at that stage, six male midwives in Victoria.

Apparently that number has gone up hugely in the last few years, which I think is great. Good on the guys for getting into it!

I had a wonderful midwife at Monash MC, her name was Betty, she was in 54North, where I was for a month before Alex was born. She was so caring, and we got along really well. She was the one who insisted I stay in a shared ward for the month before Alex was born, as she said that I needed company. She was right. I think I would have been really depressed on my own.

But she (as the nurse unit manager) also managed to get me a single room after Alex was born, especially as he was in the special care nursery for his whole stay, and I would have been the only woman on the ward without their baby next to them overnight... She was REALLY good.