Karen makes successful career switch

Karen Bruce is one of 31 newly qualified midwives to joint the health authority after completing their degrees at the University of the West of Scotland.

They have now completed their induction course with the board. Karen (39) and her colleagues will be based at the Maternity Unit at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

Originally graduating in 2002 with degrees in interior design and architecture, Karen worked for the Estée Lauder group and Smashbox before deciding to retrain.

Karen said: “I wanted to become a midwife as a way of giving something back after the excellent care I received going through maternity services with my two daughters.

“I was left in awe of the care and support I received and this inspired me to pursue midwifery as a profession. The empowerment I felt from my midwives was such an incredible feeling that I would love to give every woman in my care the opportunity to experience this for themselves.”

Evelyn Frame, chief midwife, said: “It’s fantastic to have recruited such a large cohort of midwives at one time.

“They’ve now completed their induction programme to learn more about the care we provide to women and their families and how we support them in their new roles.

“Each new midwife has a development plan for their early years in the role to ensure that they gain experience and build new skills in all areas of midwifery.

“We are investing in our future by supporting our midwives and ensuring we’re always well placed to meet the developments we see in the continual evolution of maternity care.”