Emma experiences the training process on a maternity ward, working four shifts a week, to discover what makes it one of the toughest, but most rewarding careers possible.
Emma meets second-time mum Lianne, who is expecting twins, but complications mean they might be delivered prematurely. Carly is kept waiting by her second baby
Emma meets Michelle, who is 33 weeks pregnant with her second child and has been in and out of hospital for the past month, suffering with heavy bleeding.
Emma receives bereavement training, one topic she has not been looking forward to. As she prepares for the training, veteran Maternity Care Assistant Val shares a story.
Emma is on the labour ward, a consultant-led maternity unit for higher-risk mums-to-be. Forty-one-year-old Nicola and her husband Gavin are her first patients of the day.
After 10 weeks, Emma's time as a Maternity Care Assistant comes to an emotional end. Katherine's hopes of a natural birth are dashed as she is rushed into theatre.
Emma returns to complete her training at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex, and is put straight to work when asked to assist with a water birth.
Emma meets Sara and Jake, a newlywed couple in labour with their first baby, along with Beth, who is expecting her first child with her partner Chloe.
Emma's training steps up a gear when she is the only maternity care assistant in theatre. Another labour turns into an emergency when the baby moves into a difficult position.
Emma works for the first time on the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Emma assists, as the only MCA in Jodie's elective caesarian section. And Emma meets Erinoulla, whose newborn baby has a clubfoot.
Emma's resolve is tested during emergency training and while working in theatre she witnesses her first ever twin birth.
Emma meets third time mum Ashley who has suffered from post-natal depression in the past and second time mum Laura who's had a difficult time expanding her family. The elective caesarean team has a challenging breech delivery for first time mum Loi.
It's Emma's final week - has she done enough to become a fully qualified Maternity Care Assistant? There's also a rare twin birth with the arrival of Dione's babies.
There is lots to remember and learn in a busy first week back - Emma is given a refresher on the jobs she'll be expected to soon carry out alone, like pre-operative checks.
Emma meets first-time mum Hannah to take her blood ahead of a planned caesarean, as well as Chenelle and Sean, who are rushed to theatre for a forceps birth.
Emma takes on more responsibility in the operating theatre, where she witnesses her first emergency. Newly qualified midwife Corinne cares for second-time parents Nicola and Aaron.
This episode contains discussions which some may find upsetting. Emma revisits a challenging aspect of the MCA role - learning how to care for a family who have lost a baby.
For the first time since she's been back, Emma works in the neonatal intensive care unit, where she meets new parents Jade and Connor, who are expecting identical twin boys.
Emma is ready to start working in the community, caring for new mums and babies at home. Second-time mum Sally is rushed for a life-saving procedure just moments after giving birth.
With just two weeks to go till Emma's time at the hospital draws to an end, there are still key training elements to tackle. This week sees Emma learning how to monitor newborn babies for serious illnesses and out in the community Emma is supervised as she carries out her first ever blood test on a five-day old baby.
Emma learns how to monitor newborn babies for serious illnesses, and out in the community, she carries out her first ever blood test on a five-day old baby.
After working on the frontline of a maternity unit last year, Emma goes on a road trip to catch up with the families of the babies born during her time in the hospital.
Emma wants to create a good first impression, but her first day doesn't start as planned when she forgets to bring the right shoes and has to call her husband.
In her second week at Watford General Hospital, Emma must step up when she's asked to take an active role in theatre during a caesarean birth.
Nearly halfway through her time at the hospital, Emma gets thrown in at the deep end with birthing pool evacuation training and learning how to remove a catheter.
Emma seeks advice from her mentor Jo on how to accelerate her Maternity Support Worker training. Jo takes her under her wing and gets Emma to do two critical tests on new-born babies.
Emma is running out of time to get her qualification and sets a deadline to finish by the end of the week. But to do this she has to get her surgical skills signed off in theatre.
Emma's time at the hospital comes to an end. Before she leaves, she faces the biggest challenge of her NHS career - running an ante-natal clinic for expectant mums completely on her own.
Emma catches up with the families of babies born while she worked on a maternity unit.
