Nurses and Midwives are frontline clinicians in the healthcare world. They enable people to live the healthiest and most comfortable life possible. They support people to live as independently as possible while they are living with a disability or while they are sick or when they are dying.
Midwives work with pregnancy and childbirth, caring for mother and child. They manage women’s pregnancy and the birth of their children from the time they are preparing for pregnancy until 6 weeks after their children are born.
Nurses and midwives can work in all settings, for example, hospitals, hospices, older people’s homes, businesses, defence forces, prisons, GP practices, in the community and in people’s homes. Nurses educated in Ireland are welcome in most countries and often volunteer to work with aid agencies abroad.
Nursing is an extremely rewarding career which enables you to make a positive impact on people’s lives. It is a combination of academic, communication and teamwork skills. Nurses are always in demand and this presents excellent employment opportunities.
Midwifery is perhaps one of the most fulfilling and rewarding career paths you could choose.
Not only will you be supporting women throughout and after their pregnancies and bringing new life into the world, you’ll also learn a variety of skills whilst on the job and receive great working benefits.
Midwives recognise pregnancy, childbirth and the postnatal period as a healthy and profound experience in women’s lives and use their professional knowledge, skills and attitudes, to support the woman and her family, working autonomously and within the multidisciplinary team.
Midwives could work in a variety of settings, for example: antenatal and postnatal wards and clinics, birthing rooms, Midwifery Led Units (MLUs), community midwifery services, neonatal units, and obstetric theatres.
Both nurses and midwives must undertake an honours degree and register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board in order to practice.
As a nurse within the HSE, you will be working as part of a multidisciplinary team, including medics, social work, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and other health and social care professionals.
Nurses provide care for individuals of all ages, families, groups and communities, and in all settings. In hospitals, you could be based on a hospital ward, Emergency Department, operating theatre or intensive care unit. You can also work in community settings, such as a primary care centre and even the patients’ homes.
There are five disciplines in Nursing and Midwifery:
– Children’s and General Nursing
– Intellectual Disability Nursing
Career progression
The clinical pathway offers you the opportunity to work in a wide and varied range of nursing and midwifery roles. The emphasis is on providing direct patient care. It can lead to careers in specialist or advanced practice.
There are structured management career pathways for nursing and midwifery. This can lead to roles as clinical nurse or midwife managers, assistant directors or directors of nursing or midwifery.
The education pathway can lead to a career in education as nurse or midwife tutor within both educational and clinical settings.
The research pathway gives nurses and midwives the chance to use both knowledge and innovation to impact on evidence-based research.
Click on the following links for further information on each of the fields: Clinical, Management, Education, and Research.
Further Education
There are many training and educational opportunities designed to enhance the skills of our workforce and improve on the care our nursing and midwifery professionals provide.
Your local Nursing and Midwifery Planning and Development Unit (NMPDU) supports continuing professional development programmes, including masterclasses, workshops, study days and conferences.
There are leadership opportunities and a robust Personal Development Planning (PDP) process to assist you in your development throughout your career.
HSeLanD is our portal that offers an array of training and development opportunities.
If you wish to pursue further education, check NMBI‘s approved post-registration courses leading to an additional registration or click here.
It is worth noting that a nursing or midwifery qualification is recognised in many other countries, and so is also a passport to opportunities to travel and work abroad.
If you are interested in pursuing a career in nursing or midwifery you can undertake a pre-registration honours degree programme.
Click on the following links to find out more about pre-registration entry pathways for:
General and Children’s Nursing
Intellectual Disability Nursing
Psychiatric Nursing (also referred to as Mental Health Nursing)
If you are over 23 by the January of the year of application, you are eligible to apply as a mature student.
Following successful completion of a pre-registration programme in nursing/midwifery there are numerous further opportunities for you to pursue post registration programmes and enhance your nursing/midwifery career.
Click on the following links to find out more about post registration entry pathways for:
Children’s Nursing, Post Registration Programme
Intellectual Disability Nursing, Post Registration Programme
Psychiatric Nursing, Post Registration Programme (also referred to as Mental Health Nursing)
Midwifery, Post Registration Programme
Clinical Nurse/Midwife Specialist
Advanced Nurse/Midwife Practitioner
