AIMS Journal, 2017, Vol 29 No 2
When you Call The Midwife
to the tune of ‘let it be’
When you Call the Midwife, you are
Calling someone who can see
Birth’s a natural process... Let It Be
If the Midwife’s frightened, or is
Bullied to conformity
The birth you want won’t happen Can’t you See?
NMC, NMC, NMC, NMC
Midwives won’t be bullied... Let Us Be
Women need a midwife full of
Wisdom and integrity
If we’re to keep birth normal – Let It Be
If IMs are the iceberg there are
Hundreds more beneath the sea
Midwives won’t be bullied. Let Us Be.
Let Us Be, Let Us Be, Let Us Be, Let Us Be
Midwives won’t be bullied. Let Us Be.
It’s no way to have a baby
to the tune of ‘It’s a long way to Tipperary’
It is no way to have a baby
On a conveyor belt
It is no way to have a baby
If only pain and fear is felt.
How long’s a normal labour?
How long’s a piece of string?
It is just no way to have a baby
With the clock tick-tocking...
It is no way to have a baby
Without people you know.
It is no way to have a baby
Feeling rushed, not safe and slow
Goodbye legs in stirrups
Farewell facing the wall
It is just no way to have a baby.
It is NOT ‘One Size Fits All’
Words by Rix Pyke, with (very small) alterations by Becky Reed and Suyai Steinhauer
The AIMS Journal spearheads discussions about change and development in the maternity services..
AIMS Journal articles on the website go back to 1960, offering an important historical record of maternity issues over the past 60 years. Please check the date of the article because the situation that it discusses may have changed since it was published. We are also very aware that the language used in many articles may not be the language that AIMS would use today.
To contact the editors, please email: journal@aims.org.uk
We make the AIMS Journal freely available so that as many people as possible can benefit from the articles. If you found this article interesting please consider supporting us by becoming an AIMS member or making a donation. We are a small charity that accepts no commercial sponsorship, in order to preserve our reputation for providing impartial, evidence-based information.
AIMS supports all maternity service users to navigate the system as it exists, and campaigns for a system which truly meets the needs of all.