HEATHER DONALD
Office: 09 838 2950
Mobile: 0275 848 444
Urgent: 0800 4 MIDWIFE (0800 464 394)
CONTACT HEATHER
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Midwifery is a "way of life". I love what I do and this provides the passion and enthusiasm for a demanding role. I am an experienced midwife and have been providing midwifery care for almost 20 years. I started my nursing career in 1974 but had always wanted to be a midwife so trained at the Auckland University of Technology and registered as a midwife in 1992.
Since August 1997, I have been practicing as a Lead Maternity Care midwife in West Auckland offering both hospital and home births. I care for approximately 60 women a year providing antenatal, birthing and after birth care from pregnancy tests until 4-6 weeks after birth. I have practiced at National Woman's Hospital as a staff midwife gaining experience in all departments. I was also a Domino Midwife in the hospital's continuity of care scheme for three years.
I encourage a natural approach to birth guided by the New Zealand College of Midwives philosophy of partnership with women. I support the use of alternative medicine in the birth process and offer expertise in both water and home birth. I am equally able to provide high risk maternity care when the birth process needs medical involvement and close monitoring with technical equipment.
It is important that midwives take regular time out to recover from the irregular work hours and sometimes the long hours we can work at one time. I take regular days off each week and my backup is Yvonne Daji or Sam Savage. I also have Nadine, a registered midwife, who can provide daytime appointment cover for me if I am at a birth or sleeping after being up all night.
I keep updated in clinical skills and ongoing education to meet the requirements of my practicing certificate. In 1999 I completed my Masters in Public Health at the University of Auckland and currently I am working towards my Doctorate in Health Sciences with the Auckland University of Technology.
My husband and I have four adult children, two son in laws and two grand daughters. We lived in Dunedin until 1984 and then moved north to Auckland to further our careers and education. We then lived three years in South America (Ecuador and Peru) working with an international organisation involved in Christian outreach and primary health care before returning to Auckland.
I enjoy outdoor sports and use jogging, kayaking and biking for fitness and relaxation. I also enjoy traveling. In July and August in 2010 I had the amazing opportunity of traveling to the Congo in Africa to extend my midwifery skills and knowledge .