Princess Anne sent a letter of to midwives ahead of the new year, which will celebrate their work  

The Princess Royal has expressed her ‘profound admiration’ for midwives in a letter to mark the start of a year-long celebration of the profession.

Princess Anne, 69, wrote to the Royal College of Midwives in London on the eve of 2020,  a year which has been designated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as the Year of the Nurse and Midwife, and aims to recognise nurses and midwives who play a vital role in providing health care services.

It comes after the Duchess of Cambridge, 37, the patron of the Nursing Now campaign, penned an open letter to midwifes where she praised their ‘true impact’ on people and their ‘humbling work.’ 

In her letter, the Queen’s onlyh daughter wrote: ‘I wanted to take this opportunity on the eve of International Year of the Midwife in 2020 to express my profound admiration for the incredible and important work that you do; the value of which cannot be underestimated.’

Anne is the patron of the Royal College of Midwives. In her letter, she stated the value of midwifery shouldn’t be ‘underestimated.’ 

As a patron of The Royal College of Midwives, Anne said she had the ‘pleasure’ of meeting maternity teams around the country over the years, and witnessed first-hand the ‘joy on the faces of mothers and their partners and their gratitude’ towards the workers.

According to the WHO, the world needs nine million more nurses and midwives if it is to achieve universal health coverage by 2030.

Next year will also see the 200th anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale, a nurse who helped organise care for wounded soldiers during the Crimean War.

In Anne’s letter, she went on to describe the coming year as an opportunity to celebrate the ‘unique contribution to the health, well-being and empowerment of women rightly in the spotlight.’

Pictured at the Royal Cornwall hospital, meeting with midwives. Princess Anne praised midwives for their contribution to the well-being and health of women around the country

She ended her letter by saying: ‘I offer my very best wishes to you all for the year ahead celebrating you and your profession. I look forward to meeting even more of you in the coming year; your year.’

In her letter, Anne mentioned that Kate would be penning a missive of her own to the midwives. The open letter was actually published four days ago, after Kate did a two-day work experience at Kingston Hospital maternity unit in south London. 

‘You are there for women at their most vulnerable; you witness strength, pain and unimaginable joy on a daily basis. Your work often goes on behind the scenes, and away from the spotlight,’ the letter read. 

Anne is the patron of the Royal College of Midwives. In her letter, she stated the value of midwifery shouldn’t be ‘underestimated.’ Pictured at the Royal National Children’s Springboard Foundation reception at 1 Cabot Square in London on November 14

At the end of November, the Duchess of Cambridge spent two days privately undertaking ‘work experience’ at Kingston Hospital maternity unit in south-west London to learn about what it was like to work in frontline maternity care, describing the experience as ‘a privilege’.

Four photographs taken during her time there, newly released by Kensington Palace, show her with a delighted couple and their newborn baby, chatting to staff and posing for a team photo.

Kate also sat in on home birth meetings at the hospital and in patients’ homes, learning about everything from the kit carried by midwives to the practicalities of setting up a birthing pool.

The duchess did not witness or take part in any medical procedures. In tribute to the staff at Kingston Hospital and their colleagues worldwide, Kate writes: ‘Although this was not my first encounter with the care and kindness provided by midwives across the country, it gave me a broader insight into the true impact you have on everybody you help.’

Over the past few years, the duchess has dedicated a significant amount of her work to an ‘Early Years’ project, concentrating on the pivotal period of development between pregnancy and the age of five when children build crucial foundations for life.

Four photographs taken during her time at Kingston Hospital maternity unit in south-west London, newly released by Kensington Palace, show her with a delighted couple and their newborn baby 

The duchess learnt about what it was like to work in frontline maternity care, describing the experience as ‘a privilege’ 

The Duchess of Cambridge with staff during the time in November she spent at Kingston Hospital’s Maternity Unit in south London