Midland’s male midwife

21 Jun 2017

Reyer, also known as the ‘baby whisperer’ for his soft voice which soothes babies, is the only male midwife at the hospital and one of only a handful of male midwives in Australia.

His journey to becoming a midwife started as a young child in the Congo where he was inspired by obstetricians who worked with his father, who was sent to the region as a Minister.

“This led me to nursing which I started in Sydney. I decided that I liked working with women and children and started my midwifery training,” he said.

“I then moved to Western Australia and tried to find a job as a midwife but because male midwives weren’t common, I kept getting turned down.”

Despite the bumpy start to his career, Reyer said he has worked in a variety of nursing and midwifery settings before joining St John of God Midland Public Hospital in 2015.

“The core Values of Hospitality, Respect, Compassion, Justice and Excellence of St John of God Health Care really resonated with me,” Reyer said.

Reyer’s advice to people considering a career in midwifery?

“The ability to visualise the things you can feel but not see, is one of the most important skills a midwife can possess,” he said.

“If you do want to be a midwife, I would say go for it, you’ll never look back.”

A married father of three adult children (none of whom are midwives themselves), Reyer hopes that at least one of his eight grandchildren might follow in his footsteps.