Working Life: I care for pregnant women with substance and alcohol misuse issues
Justin Gleeson, a Clinical Midwife Specialist, discusses his work supporting pregnant women struggling with substance and alcohol misuse. He emphasizes the importance of compassionate, non-judgmental care to improve health outcomes for both mothers and their babies.
Why it matters
Highlights the critical intersection of social work and healthcare in addressing the needs of vulnerable populations often marginalized by systemic prejudice.
Justin Gleeson, Clinical Midwife Specialist in Substance and Alcohol Misuse, HSE, pictured in Galway city. Picture: Ray Ryan
“Growing up in a small rural village in Co Galway, I was heavily influenced by my grandfather, a GP, and my mother, who was a nurse. After my Leaving Cert, I followed in their footsteps and studied nursing at the University of Galway.
“During my training, I always admired the professional autonomy and independent clinical responsibility that midwives had while caring for normal pregnancies and births. I completed a postgraduate diploma in midwifery studies at Trinity College Dublin and practised as a midwife in the labour ward at Dublin’s Rotunda Hospital.
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