Lucia Mangena

Lucia Mangena, Clinical Support Worker, Jessops Wing Labour Ward, Sheffield Teaching Hospital.

I joined the team because I have passion for working with women and looking after babies. I worked for the Sheffield Children’s Hospital for seven years before joining the Jessop Wing and had wanted to work in a maternity ward for a long time as it is a rewarding job where I can see my actions are making a positive difference.

A typical day for me will be supporting the midwives to support women before, during and after birth. This includes helping them to bathe or shower, monitoring patients, performing basic health checks and recording observations as well as taking bloods and sending them to the laboratory.  

My role also includes making patients feel comfortable during their stay on labour ward, reassuring and assisting mothers who require support to breast feed their babies effectively and in a safe environment.  

Being a clinical support worker is special role because you have the desire to improve the life of another and not be judgemental about a situation. I enjoy supporting women in times of distress especially when they are in labour and supporting them after birth – for example, making a nice tea tray for them and their family.  

I have always enjoyed working with people, making a difference to people’s lives and supporting my work colleagues to deliver the best maternity care. I enjoy working on my ward because we work as a team and the multi-disciplinary team is always there to support.  

I have completed a number of training sessions to develop and widen my skills with working with mothers such as infant feeding, taking bloods, blood pressure readings, and recording fluids. This training has made my skills more effective when delivering care to patients. 

My main goal is to be a maternity support worker or train as a midwife and to specialise in post-natal depression in young women. I would recommend someone to become a Clinical Support Worker because it’s a rewarding job where you can see your actions are making positive difference to patients’ lives.