Advancing to basics: a student midwife in Gambia

As a student midwife I wanted to experience the delivery of midwifery care in a setting that was completely different from what I was used to, and had the opportunity to join a team of 10 medical students on a two-week exchange visit to Gambia as part of the Swansea-Gambia link. I worked on the maternity unit at the Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital (RVTH) in the capital city, Banjul, the national referral centre for Gambia. The Swansea-Gambia link was formed from 'Wales for Africa Health links'-a unique response, from Wales, to the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (United Nations Development Plan (UNDP) 2009). I am thrilled that my involvement with the link has now established the opportunity for two Swansea midwifery students to visit Gambia each year as an elective placement.