A Supervisor of Midwives has been nominated by fellow colleagues usually because of her/his approachable nature, leadership ability and good communication skills.

A Supervisor of Midwives is available for both midwives and women. The Supervisor is not ‘in charge' of the midwives but often works in partnership with the midwives and women. All Supervisors have additional roles - some are midwife managers and many are midwives who work in the community, antenatal clinics and on the wards or as Independent Midwives.

Supervisors are there to be a support as well as giving sound professional advice. Women are entitled to talk to a supervisor of midwives in confidence if any issues arise with which they may need assistance.

All supervisors of midwives are accountable to the Local Supervisory Authority (LSA) for the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) and have standards to achieve. The Local supervising Authority has an appointed Midwifery officer, often known as the LSAMO - for more information see ‘what is an LSAMO' below.

A Supervisor of Midwives is an experienced midwife who has practised as a midwife for at least three years and has successfully completed a programme of specific education to enable her to do this role.  She has been through a local selection process and has been appointed to the role.

Midwives are responsible for helping a woman to make an informed choice about her care but sometimes the choices available are limited by locally agreed policies or the availability of services. This can sometimes lead to challenges for both midwives and women and may be a situation where a Supervisor of Midwives can help. When midwives and or women are faced with a situation where they feel they need further support and advice, the Supervisor of Midwives can act as a resource and assist in discussions with women.  

How can I contact a Supervisor of Midwives?

To contact a SoM ‘phone your local hospital and ask to speak to the on-call SoM - you can do this via the main switch board. You do not need to know his/her name beforehand & you do not have to explain to anyone else why you wish to talk to him/her. Most hospitals have many midwives who are also SoMs working in them, so there should always be a SoM available.

What is an LSAMO?

She is a practising midwife with broad knowledge and experience of midwifery practice. She will also have had broad experience of supervision of midwives and practice as a supervisor of midwives. She will have a thorough understanding of regulations, rules and codes of practice relating to midwives and must be available and approachable to support women accessing midwifery care. Midwives in her appointed geographical area will be under her supervision.

What does an LSAMO do?

The LSAMO is available to women if they wish to discuss any aspect of their midwifery care that they do not feel has been resolved by contacting a midwife or SoM. The LSAMO also audits the standards of supervision within her area, making sure that each midwife meets the requirements for practice. She also investigates cases of alleged misconduct or lack of competence. She supports and guides SoMs in her geographical area and meets with them regularly. She is not employed by the NHS but by the NMC & she reports directly to the NMC.

I have tried to resolve an issue with a midwife & with an SoM but I'm not happy with the result. How can I contact an LSAMO?

If you follow this link it will take you to the NMC website with the contact details of the LSAMOs for Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland

http://www.nmc-uk.org/aArticle.aspx?ArticleID=2096

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)

The Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) safeguards the health and wellbeing of the public by continually regulating, reviewing and promoting nursing and midwifery standards.

To achieve its aims, the NMC:

•  maintains a register of qualified nurses, midwives and specialist community public health nurses

•  sets standards for conduct, performance and ethics

•  provides advice for nurses and midwives

•  considers allegations of misconduct, lack of competence or unfitness to practise due to ill health

How can the NMC Structure help me if I have a problem with my midwifery care?

If you had a problem with your midwifery care at any time during your pregnancy, birth and in the post natal period then always talk to your midwife first. If you feel you cannot talk to her about an issue (maybe your problem has been with her) or if you do not feel the problem was resolved by talking to her or if the situation is urgent, you can:

• Contact a local SoM to discuss your problem or concerns and ways of resolving them
  

If you still felt that the issue was not resolved or dealt with by the SoM then you can:

• Contact the LSAMO via the NMC website

If you still have serious concerns or problems then:

• Contact the NMC directly

Remember this regulatory structure deals with MIDWIVES and MIDWIFERY care and practice, it does not deal with for example; parking at the hospital, or other management issues of the Trust or Health Board; or the care provided by Doctors or other health care professionals. However if you are unsure of who to talk to about any problem that you have, discuss it with your midwife or an SoM who should be able to help you find out how resolve or deal with the problem.

The lines of Communication between Mothers, Midwives, SOMs, the LSAMO and the NMC