Erasmus+ teaching exchange to Midwifery Academy in Groningen and Amsterdam, Netherlands
Teacher: Emilija Wilson, Midwife, Assistant professor, Department of Women’s and Children’s Health Date of exchange: May 12-14, 2025
I travelled with Malin Olsen, Midwife and AKA at St: Görans hospital and Emelie Andersson, Midwife and supervisor for midwifery students from Karolinska Institutet and for the students from the Midwifery Academy in Groningen and Amsterdam doing their internship during their exchange.
The first day we visited the Midwifery Academy in Groningen. They had their annual international week ongoing, and we held presentations about “The scope of midwifery practice and education” from a Swedish perspective for first year midwifery students and their teachers. A visit to a Primary care facility and to the University hospital gave us further perspectives on midwifery practice in the Netherlands as well as interprofessional learning activities for students in the clinical setting.
Picture 1: Visiting the Midwifery Academy in Amsterdam during their international week. L-R: Emelie Andersson (Midwife), Malin Olsen (Midwife) and Emilija Wilson (Midwife).
In the evening, we had a lovely dinner with students and teachers from the Academy sharing experiences and exploring cultural aspects of the exchange.
The next day we took the train from Groningen to Amsterdam where we met students and teachers from the Midwifery Academy in Amsterdam. We had a presentation, and we were given a tour of the Academy, which was an incredibly nice and inspiring learning environment. Many historical pictures and materials as decoration and in the clinical training center, we were inspired by their very good materials and phantoms for practicing clinical skills.
The people responsible for midwifery education in both Groningen and Amsterdam were very welcoming and shared experiences with us. We had many fruitful discussions with them about similarities and differences in midwifery education and healthcare and concluded that it would be very educating to have a more interactive activity, i.e. a workshop during the mobility period. On the last day we also had the opportunity to take a walk through Amsterdam and visit the Rijksmuseum.
Picture 2: Oudezijds Voorburgwal, a street and canal in De Wallen in the center of Amsterdam.
Thank you Erasmus+ and KI for this great exchange possibility!
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