About Project

About Project

BMS is the professional association for midwives in the country registered by the Department of women’s affairs, Bangladesh. There are 4,987 members of BMS across the country.  BMS supports the rights of women to access safe, respectful maternity care. BMS is supported by the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) and UNFPA Bangladesh. From June 2017 to December 2022, BMS has been implementing a twinning project with Royal College of Midwives (RCM) UK and from January 2023 BMS has started implementing a project titled “Strengthening BMS” with International Confederation of Midwives (ICM), which will continue for four years. 



Twinning Project:

BMS was twinned with Royal College of Midwives (RCM) UK from 2017 to 2022. The twinning project project is funded by UNFPA. The objectives of the project are: 


  • Strengthen BMS
  • Advocate for the midwifery profession
  • Create demand for midwifery services

The project was nominated for the Times Higher Award 2020 under the International Collaboration of the year category. This was a prestigious academic award of the Times newspaper.

PROJECT AIM:
BMS will thrive, will be led by midwives and will have a strong and active membership, so that midwives are visible and valued in Bangladesh and  there is a demand for midwifery services.





BMS in 2017:

    • Founders were pioneers
    • Led by nurses – no midwives or space for midwives’ voices
    • Few paid members; no membership systems or benefits
    • Constitution out of date
    • No BMS staff or policies
    • No link with private sector
    • Limited stakeholders
    • No midwife leaders
    • MACAT Score 29% (1/7)

    Planned Outcome:

    • Increase in BMS’ organizational capacity
    • Young Midwife Leader Development
    • Digital innovation for member solutions
    • BMS will be active in advocacy
    • Increased emergency response capability
    Methodology:
    • Baseline needs assessment (2017) and yearly monitoring with ICM MACAT. 
    • Strategic planning 
    • Implementation of capacity building activities through BMS board and young midwife leaders with support from UK volunteer midwives (10) and RCM staff/consultants
    • Governance re-structure (constitution, board, policies, staff)
    • Digital transformation
    A snapshot of Progress in 2021:
    • MACAT score 57% (5/7)
    • Paid members: 2,226
      • E-elections 2018 and 2021. >50% voted.  
        • Midwives had a voice.
        • BMS board all midwives; President is a midwife
        • 50 Young Midwife Leaders Developed
        • 5 midwives enrolled in international YML programs
        • Midwives in national and international leadership positions
        • Digital access for all members to BMS and e-learning

        Digital Solutions for BMS:

        • Website bmsone.com with embedded functions:
        • Cloud-based member database with reporting system and API system
        • E-voting facility
        • E-learning platform with 83 modules (additional 170 modules via App)
        • bKash (mobile money) membership fee payment
        • Digital helpline for members
        • Telephone helpline for mothers and midwives
        • Zoom, Skype and Messenger for meetings /communications
        • Survey Monkey for collecting advocacy data (2 surveys)
        • Increasing access to tablets, smart phones, laptops (more is still needed)
        Twinning Project summary achievements
        Activities & Numbers as of
        5-Oct-2022
        National executive board election had held on 15-Sep-2018 and according to the constitution after three years again on 11-Dec-2021 election through online voting system throughout the country took place using computer/laptop/smartphone with internet. The new board formed of 15 executives; among 2226 active voters 1726 casted their votes successfully.
        Current total members of BMS
        4493 (1679 annually paid active members)
        # Of Free online WCEA e-Learning courses for members
        82
        #  Of Free online WCEA Mobile application courses for members
        170
        # Of Midwives members enrolled online free courses in 2021
        141
        # Of members enrolled into online courses in 2021
        489
        # Of courses completed by members in 2021
        4186
        # Of Midwives received Training grant for English, computer skill development and MR/PAC/FP
        43
        # Of midwives supported through Young Midwife Leadership (YML) Program of RCM-BMS
        (Training, continuous coaching and mentorship support from RCM)
        51
        Response to Coronavirus pandemic
        PPE item distributed to 342 UHCs, Institutions, midwives working in humanitarian sector. Washable cloth masks, Doppler machine, infra-red thermometer, pulse oximeter, stethoscope etc distributed to midwives.
        •        Infra-red thermometer distributed to 145 UHCs
        •        Color rechargeable Doppler machine distributed to 140 UHCs
         
        Response to flood in Sunamganj district 2020
        Mobile phone, birthing tool, ball distribution
        Media partners
        Manchitra, Red Pixel
        TV channels – Gazi, Bangla Vision, Bangla, Asian, Independent, NTV
        Radio – Dhoni, Radio Nalta
        Newspapers- Ittefaq, Janakantha, Manabjamin, Prothomalo, Our times, Amader Notun shomoy, Amader Shomoy, NTV online
        International Exposures of Midwives supported by BMS
        Denmark, New York, Geneva, Dubai, New Delhi, Cambodia, United Kingdom, India
        Expert visits in Bangladesh
        15 RCM staff visits
        Helpline for membership and educational course trouble shooting
        01844453451/ajjcomputer@gmail.com,
        Facebook: facebook.com/ajjcomputer
        Dedicated website and membership database system
        bmsone.com


        Conclusion:

        • Digital innovation in Bangladesh, as part of a twinning project, has transformed BMS and enabled midwives’ voices to be heard.
        • Evaluation during 2022 
        • Planning for sustainability
        • Assimilating and disseminating lessons learned for BMS and RCM