Looking back on 40 years

Midwife: “This profession is enormously rewarding”

From left: Monika Kaiblinger, Michaela Schweiger and head physician Josef Hager

(Bild: OÖG / Dominik Derflinger / 2021)

Monika Kaiblinger started working as a midwife at Pyrhn Eisenwurzen Klinikum Kirchdorf in 1984 at the age of 19. 40 years later, she looks back on her career and the many changes over the four decades. In the "Krone" interview, the Micheldorf native explains whether she would choose this profession again.

I haven't counted exactly, but it must be around 3000 babies," says Monika Kaiblinger proudly. That's how many children she has "brought into the world" since joining the Pyhrn-Eisenwurzen Clinic in Kirchdorf in 1984. As one of the youngest qualified midwives of her time, the Micheldorf native started on the maternity ward at the age of 19, from which she is now saying goodbye after 40 years.

Enormous changes
A lot has changed since then: "The focus in childbirth today is on the wishes and needs of the women. Instead of bunks in the delivery room, where the beds were only separated by curtains, there are now water births with dimmed lighting and music, for example. Preliminary examinations and medicine have massively reduced miscarriages, caesarean sections have almost quintupled. Fathers are now almost always present," says Kaiblinger.

In the past, newborns were still presented to their mothers through a window

(Bild: privat)

The passionate midwife was also often present at spring births

(Bild: privat)

Even after 40 years, the passion has by no means diminished

(Bild: OÖG)

Thick skin is rewarded
"The appreciation of the profession has also increased: At the very beginning there were only three of us, today we are 18 midwives." Births are extremely emotional exceptional situations where verbal derailments often occur. "But we don't even realize that. Instead, we can share in the joy when everything goes well. That's the best thing of all and very rewarding," says the 59-year-old.

"Would do it again"
If she had the choice again, she would become a midwife again: "Supporting the final stage of pregnancy is a dream and also very rewarding and great feedback for us. Of course, every delivery still involves a risk, but much less than a few decades ago," says Kaiblinger with satisfaction.