A familiar face for Yass mothers is Liz Perks – and she’s just received an award for her efforts. Photo: Southern NSW Health District.
Returning from an appointment one day, Liz Perks had a special guest jump into her boot – a chicken.
“I just remember that. They were pretty tame [chickens], just inquisitive!”
The chooks belonged to a mum the Yass midwife was visiting. While it was a unique end to a visit, it was just one of the many times Ms Perks has headed out to see mothers at their homes as a community midwife in the Yass area.
“I really enjoy that. I get a lot of satisfaction out of the visits. I enjoy seeing first-time mothers grow in confidence over the visiting days I have with them,” she said.
“I enjoy seeing children of mothers that I’ve seen before; they say, ‘This is Liz, she saw you when you were a baby.'”
Ms Perks is from Capital country, but headed to Campden Hospital in Sydney to study as a nurse. She left to work in Darwin and Catherine, before returning to the region.
“I enjoyed my time in the Northern Territory; I felt it was completely different,” she said.
After giving birth to her two kids, she retrained as a midwife and eventually took up her position at Yass.
“I’ve been at Yass for 27 years. I was there when we had a maternity service and then I worked on the wards and in the ED [emergency department],” she said.
“This opportunity came up, and I applied for it and got it. It’s been a learning curve – [you’re] always learning.”
She said her role let her focus on the “mother-babies side” of midwifery and “how they’re travelling” before and after a birth.
“Seeing someone [in a visit means that] they’ve invited you into their environment. It’s good to see where women are coming from by going into their homes,” she said.
“It’s a long way to travel [to a hospital] if there’s a problem. If it can be sorted out without them having to go somewhere, that’s always good.”
Ms Perks says working in the community is “completely different” to a hospital setting, and just as rewarding for her. Photo: Region.
Ms Perks was named 2025 Southern Midwife of the Year for the Southern NSW Local Health District (SNSWLHD) at a recent morning tea with colleagues.
“It was a complete surprise because there are so many midwives who are worthy of recognition,” she said.
The award means Ms Perks will be nominated in the 2025 NSW Health Excellence in Nursing and Midwifery Awards, to be held in Sydney later this year.
SNSWLHD District Director Nursing, Midwifery and Clinical Governance Peter Leach praised Liz’s contribution to the community.
“Liz consistently strives to provide exceptional, person-centred care for new mothers and their babies through her dedicated work ethic,” he said.
“This year has marked continued growth for midwifery services across Southern NSW, with the ongoing expansion of the Midwifery Group Practice model across the region – ensuring more women have access to continuity of care throughout their pregnancy, birth, and postnatal journey.
“To Liz, and to every midwife across our district – thank you. You change lives every day.”
