Since the beginning of the winter semester 2020/2021, Professor Dr. Monika Greening has held a professorship for midwifery science at the Department of Social and Health Services. Previously, the midwife with a doctorate and a degree in nursing management worked for many years as a professor of midwifery and also as vice dean and dean in the Department of Health and Nursing at the Catholic University of Applied Sciences in Mainz. Here she introduces herself and her current sphere of activity in more detail in an interview.
You have now been a professor of midwifery at HWG LU since September 2020. Did you have a good start despite the Corona-related restrictions?
Thanks to the many good spirits in - and around - the department, my start was very pleasant.
What are the responsibilities of your new position?
Besides teaching, I am active in the "Skills-Lab Working Group "*, which is responsible for the planning and organization of this area.
What are skills labs and what do they entail?
Skills labs are central training facilities where specific skills and abilities are taught in a practical way. At HWG LU, preparations are currently underway to establish a skills lab for the primary qualifying degree program in midwifery science, which will start in the winter semester of 2021/2022 . With the skills lab concept, the realization is taken up that professional action can be learned not only by talking about it, but in particular through a practical implementation. By depicting fields of activity that are as close to reality as possible under the roof of the educational institution, new learning and practice opportunities are created for learners. The aim is to support theory-practice transfer in healthcare training.
Components of the concept are the skills lab as a space, the skills lab method and the simulation patients and actors as actors. The interaction and integration of all three fields into the curriculum of the study program support the initiation of professional action competence. So, in our case, the skills labs are, simply put, spaces that simulate the delivery room or the maternity ward in order to practice there as realistically as possible.
Why is the establishment of these labs now relevant for HWG LU?
On January 1, 2020, the Midwifery Reform Act replaced the 1985 Midwifery Act: as a result, a bachelor's degree is mandatory for future midwives in Germany, and midwifery training follows EU guidelines. There is still a transition period for midwifery schools until 2027. HWG LU is currently the only university in Rhineland-Palatinate that now offers this midwifery degree; the skills labs are part of the curricular adjustments to the new legal requirements.
What particularly appeals to you about the new position?
In particular, the new primary qualifying degree program in midwifery science, which will start in the winter semester of 2021/22, presents a special challenge because, in accordance with the new legislation, all practical and theoretical training components of the previous midwifery training will now be the responsibility of and taught at the university.
In addition, I have "real" midwife colleagues at HWG, which was not the case in Mainz. In general, there are only a few universities in Germany that have two or more female midwifery professors. We have been granted three new professorships by the Rhineland-Palatinate Ministry of Science. Working in a team is not only much more pleasant, it also significantly increases the quality of teaching.
In addition to the dual bachelor's degree program in midwifery, the dual bachelor's degree program in midwifery science is currently being established. How are things progressing here?
We are very much on schedule. We have already developed premises, a room plan for the skills lab, developed the module manual and are currently in close contact with a company that will be responsible for equipping the skills lab, in order to plan the purchases for this practical training location.
The new master's program Innovative Care Practice in Nursing and Midwifery (Master of Arts) has also been accredited since September and will start in the summer semester of 2021. To what extent are you involved here?
Here I take over a small part of the teaching.
What are the first goals you have set for yourself?
My first goal is to arrive in peace! To familiarize myself with the team and the department and to learn to understand the internal university structures. I have been elected to the departmental council, which will help me to get to know the university better. With the new degree program, another goal has already been defined.
Before taking up your post in Ludwigshafen, you were at the Catholic University of Applied Sciences in Mainz for many years. What made you decide to move to Ludwigshafen?
As I mentioned earlier, the new course of study was the deciding factor for me. There are no plans underway at the Catholic University of Applied Sciences in Mainz to establish a primary qualifying degree program for midwives.
What do you want to focus on in your teaching?
Among others, embodiment, i.e. the interaction of body and psyche in the context of recent cognitive science, professional policy, evidence-based practice EbP or movement in pregnancy.
And in research?
The same focus as teaching, as well as qualitative research focusing on women's and families' experiences.
What advice would you give your students for their studies?
To be critical and curious. To ask as many questions as possible. To avoid people who justify their actions with "We've always done it that way."
And for their career path?
Make sure you have a balance between stress and relief. Be curious and open to change. Make the woman, her family and their well-being the focus of your actions. Avoid negative people. Enjoy life.
Thank you very much for the interview!
(Interview: Elena Wassmann)
