Childbirth experiences captured by photographer

James W Kelly

BBC News

27 September 2024

Image source, James Clifford Kent
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The series features a woman undergoing a C-section delivery, documenting the experiences of both staff and patients
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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The Queen Mary Maternity Unit was chosen to showcase the lesser-seen moments of bringing new life into the world
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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The exhibition features close-ups of staff like Velencia to try and capture the emotion in the delivery room
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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The series offers a moving portrayal of the journey that expectant families go on during this time
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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The series of photos also showed medics preparing to carry out surgical procedures
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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The series captures team briefings led by consultants to the moment a baby takes its first breath after a C-section is carried out
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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Victoria Cochrane, director of midwifery, has said these "powerful images highlight the reality of a maternity unit"
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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The photos from the exhibit have also been published in the world-leading medical journal, The Lancet
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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The photographer captured everything from pre-natal to post-natal care - such as this baby getting a vitamin K injection
Image source, James Clifford Kent
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Kent, who is based at Royal Holloway, University of London, said he wanted to capture the "resilience and shared humanity that comes with caring for people and bringing new life into the world"

An exhibition on display at a west London hospital has sought to capture the reality of the delivery room.

The black-and-white photo series was created by London-based photographer and academic James Clifford Kent, who spent time shadowing the team at the Queen Mary Maternity Unit at West Middlesex University Hospital.

Talking about his experiences, Kent said: "NHS staff respected me quietly capturing life in the unit, guiding me towards details they wanted recorded."

Included in the series, which is displayed at the hospital until 14 October, Kent documented two patients who gave birth by Caesarean section.

The exhibition runs until 14 October after which they will be displayed permanently in the Queen Mary Maternity Unit.

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Childbirth experiences captured by photographer

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