At a glance
- Be a part of a hands-on medical experience in Tanzania, on a midwifery internship, where you get to interact with local doctors and patients.
- You will provide medical care to remote communities, while practicing your skills with local staff.
- You will be in Arusha, surrounded by green vegetation and experiencing the wildlife on beautiful safaris, while living with a host family.
Is this Midwifery internship in Tanzania right for me?
If you’re looking for practical midwifery experience in a hospital, this internship is ideal for you. This is the chance to enhance your skills and knowledge, and boost your CV. It’s a great way to prepare for medical school applications or to gain confidence before graduating as a midwife.
This internship is also ideal for learning about midwifery in a developing country. You’ll get a deeper insight into the challenges women face every day when giving birth.
You don’t need any specific qualifications to join. Your role will be mainly observational and hospital staff will be there to supervise and guide you through your internship.
This project runs all year round, so you’re welcome to join whenever it suits you. The minimum duration is two weeks but we recommend staying longer, for you to gain even more midwifery work experience while in Tanzania.
What will I do on the Midwifery internship in Tanzania?
You’ll work in the maternity ward of a local hospital. Here are some of the tasks you’ll do during your midwifery internship:
- Shadow doctors and midwives in the maternity ward of a hospital
- Provide support to expectant mothers during labour
- Observe births or cesarean sections, if you are a medical student
- Provide postnatal care and advice to new mothers
- Get practical medical experience during outreaches
These are the five main areas your work will focus on:
Learn from qualified midwives
You’ll spend your days shadowing local doctors and midwives, getting to know the daily routine of staff in a maternity department. Through shadowing and observing, you’ll learn what it’s like to be a midwife in Tanzania.
Local staff will also be available to answer all of your questions. They’ll guide you through your work and chat to you about different patients.
Work with expectant mothers
The role of a midwife starts during pregnancy. You’ll sit in on consultations with expectant mothers, and see how local midwives give advice on nutrition and living healthily before their baby is born.
You’ll also get to see how medical professionals give advice to expectant mothers during labour. You can watch as they teach mothers breathing techniques, reassure them about the birthing process, and talk them through possible medical complications.
Observe births
If you are studying medicine or midwifery, you will be allowed to observe births and cesarean sections. This is the chance to see the role midwives play in the birthing process. It’s a great way to learn first-hand about delivery and you’ll get to see the first moments of a newborn baby as it’s welcomed into the world.
In Tanzania, only interns studying medicine or midwifery are permitted to observe births and cesarean sections.
Provide postnatal care
A midwife’s role doesn’t end after birth. You’ll also work with mothers after delivery to give them advice on postnatal care. You can help local midwives with assessing newborns and making sure they’re healthy. You’ll help with administering vaccinations and will talk to mothers about family planning and birth control. You’ll also chat to new mothers about how to care for their babies.
Work at medical outreaches
For more hands-on experience, you’ll work in remote communities, providing basic medical screening. The communities where we run outreaches don’t have regular access to healthcare facilities, so you’ll help improve access to basic healthcare.
Healthcare professionals will provide you with the training you need to help at outreaches. Then, you’ll go out into communities and measure things like blood pressure and blood sugar levels.
Types of midwifery placements available in Tanzania
During your internship, you can work in one department or rotate between different departments. The departments you can choose from include:
- Antenatal ward
- Neonatal ward
- Postnatal ward
If you’re interested in a specific department, feel free to contact us and we can help advise you.
Where in Tanzania will I work?
Arusha
We have placements in hospitals in Arusha. These hospitals are also under-resourced and under-funded, so you’ll find facilities are basic.
Arusha is an exciting mix of buzzing city life and peaceful nature. During your free time, you can sample tasty local food at restaurants, buy souvenirs at vibrant markets, or go on a safari in a wildlife reserve.
Alternatively, you can intern in a Maasai community hospital located near Arusha. You can join if you’re interning for a minimum of four weeks. You can only work in this hospital if you have midwifery experience. The hospital is typically busy and understaffed.
A typical day on the Midwifery internship in Tanzania
A typical work day will start at 8am and finish at 3pm. Your internship will run from Monday to Friday, with your weekends free.
You’ll start your day working with expectant mothers, helping midwives prepare them for labour and delivery. You can learn about the equipment midwives use and the measures they take to assess patients. You’ll sit in on consultations and hear more about specific problems and complications.
You can also spend some time cleaning and preparing instruments. If you’re a medical or midwifery student, you’ll get to observe births.
In the afternoon, you might help midwives assess newborn babies. Learn about the different vaccinations and treatments they get, and find out how to make sure babies are healthy. Then, you can speak to new mothers about postnatal care.
About once every two weeks, you’ll help at medical outreaches in remote communities. You’ll measure things like weight, height, blood pressure, and blood sugar. You can also weigh and measure infants to make sure they are healthy.
You’ll have your evenings free, giving you the chance to explore this vibrant country. You can visit local markets and buy souvenirs or enjoy a tasty dinner with your host family.
What are the aims and impact of this Midwifery internship?
The aim of this project is to equip you with the skills and confidence to pursue a career in midwifery. You’ll exchange knowledge with local staff and get practical experience in this field.
You can also help improve the quality of medical care at understaffed placements. By giving new mothers support and advice, you’ll help them maintain their own health and keep their babies healthy.
During medical outreaches, you’ll help provide basic medical care to communities who don’t have regular access to healthcare facilities. You’ll also help with providing medical care to women and children while working in your placement hospital. Women’s healthcare is often overlooked in Tanzania, with many women not going to hospitals during pregnancy. You’ll help tackle this issue by supporting facilities that offer women medical care during this critical time.
To ensure that we’re working towards a long-term vision, we’ve identified five main goals in our Medical Management Plan for Tanzania. These goals are:
- Encourage an understanding of medical practices and promote an exchange of medical knowledge
- Improve access to basic healthcare for disadvantaged groups
- Promote awareness of non-communicable diseases
- Improve hygiene standards
- Improve the quality of healthcare provided to patients
Help us work towards these goals, as you gain invaluable midwifery work experience in Tanzania.
Professional volunteers and medical electives for students
This project is also ideally suited to professionals interested in using their skills to help, as well as university medical and healthcare elective students.
As a professional, you can be sure we will match your training and expertise to the placement where you are needed most. With your support, we can make an even bigger impact on the local communities we work with.
If you are an elective student, we will organise an elective placement where you can learn as much as possible. We want you gain the knowledge and skills that will begin to shape your professional career.
Read more about volunteering as a professional or taking a healthcare elective as a student.
Management plans
We set out the aims and objectives of our projects in documents called Management Plans. We use them to properly plan the work you’ll do. They also help us measure and evaluate our achievements and impact each year.
Ultimately, our Management Plans help us make our projects better. This in turn means you get to be part of something that makes a real impact where it’s needed. Read more about our Management Plans.
Measuring our impact
Our projects work towards clear long-term goals, with specific annual objectives. Every volunteer and intern we send to these projects helps us work towards these goals, no matter how long they spend on our projects.
Every year we take a step back and look at how much progress we've made towards these goals. We put together a Global Impact Report, which documents our achievements. Find out more about the impact our global community of volunteers, interns and staff make, and read the latest report.
Food and accommodation
You'll stay with a host family in Arusha. They will welcome you into their home, eager to share their customs and have you teach them about your own culture. We believe that this is the best way to immerse yourself in the culture of Tanzania and have a truly unique experience.
We will always try to let you live alongside at least one other Projects Abroad volunteer or intern at the same host family. Your room will be modest, but comfortable, clean, and safe.
Your programme fee includes three meals a day.
Find out more about our accommodation.
Leisure activities and free time
A trip to Tanzania is the chance to experience life in the heart of Africa. There’s plenty to see and do here during your free time on your project.
A project in Tanzania wouldn’t be complete without a safari! This is a chance to see the beautiful wildlife of this country, like elephants, rhinos, and lions.
What’s more, Tanzania is home to the highest mountain in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro. Hiking around the base through lush vegetation is a peaceful way to spend an afternoon.
Browsing through a vibrant, local market is a must while you’re there. You can also spend time in a Maasai village, getting to know a completely different way of life.
There will likely be many other volunteers in Tanzania with you. This means you have the option to explore the country independently or with a group of like-minded volunteers from different projects.
Safety and staff support
Your safety and security is our prime concern. We have many procedures and systems to ensure you have the support you need to enjoy your trip with peace of mind. Our Projects Abroad staff are available 24 hours a day to help, and will be on-hand to make sure you settle in well at your accommodation and placement. If you encounter any problems, they will be available to help at any time.
Find out more about safety and backup.
Meet the team in Tanzania
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