To celebrate the International Day of the Midwife 2025, the faculty members and final-year postgraduate students from the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecological Nursing (OBG(N) ) at Manipal College of Nursing (MCON), Manipal Academy of Higher education ( MAHE), Manipal organized a series of programs to commemorate the ‘International Day of Midwife - 2025’ based on the global theme “Midwives: Critical in Every Crisis.” The celebrations began on May 3, 2025 with an awareness session for VI Semester B.Sc. Nursing students held at MCON, Manipal. Ms Crensha Shajin – 2nd year Postgraduate student spoke on “Managing prolonged labour – When to act quickly,” and Mr Pema Wangchuk – II year Postgraduate student shared insights on “The role of a student nurse during an obstetric emergency” These awareness sessions helped the undergraduate students understand the importance of decision-making and the critical role nurses/midwives play during emergency situations arising during childbirth. A total of 48 students actively participated and benefited from the session.

The celebration continued with the conduct of two outreach in-service education programs for nurses/midwives at the Community Health Centers (CHCs) of Shirva on May 8, 2025 and the CHC of Brahmavara on May 22, 2025. At CHC Shirva, Mr. Pema Wangchuk, II year Postgraduate student, welcomed all the participants who were participating in the in-service education program. Mrs Sweety J Fernandes, Assistant Professor, Department of OBG Nursing, at MCON, MAHE, Manipal, deliberated on a session on “Enhancing midwives' capacity in recognizing and managing maternal danger signs.” The event also featured fun games conducted by II Year MSc OBG (Nursing) students, which received good appreciation and feedback from the 22 participants who actively participated and cleared their doubts during the session.

At CHC Brahmavara, Mrs Pratibha, Assistant Professor (Sr. Scale), Department of OBG Nursing, MCON, MAHE, Manipal, deliberated on a session on ‘Peanut ball for enhancing labor support with minimal resources’ followed by a talk by Mrs Ranjani P, Assistant Professor (Sr. Scale), Department of OBG Nursing, MCON, MAHE, Manipal on “How to identify high-risk pregnancies early in the community.” These sessions were aimed at improving the knowledge and building the confidence of nurses/midwives taking care of women with high-risk pregnancies in the community. A total of 42 participants took part in the outreach program conducted in the CHC of Brahmavara. The department sincerely thanks Dr. Subramanya Rao, Chief Medical Officer(CMO) of Community Health Centre(CHC), Shirva, and Dr. Mahesh Adiga, CMO of CHC Brahmavara, for their kind support in organizing these programs.

Overall, the International Day of the Midwife 2025 celebrations were an enriching experience that brought together team effort from the students and the faculty alike. Furthermore, these programs helped in improving the knowledge of in-service staff–nurses and midwives working in the community health centers and the community, and who are the first-line healthcare workers. The programs also helped in equipping them with the necessary skills for critical decision making, as well as dealing with obstetrical emergencies when working in the community. These events support the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-Being by improving access to quality maternal care and building the capacity of the healthcare workforce at the grassroot level and also align with Sustainable Development Goal 5: Gender Equality by empowering women through improved access to reproductive health services and strengthening the role of female healthcare providers. The Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecological Nursing, MCON, MAHE Manipal, remains committed to this mission through continued education and outreach programs.