As the song plays, a montage sequence of flashbacks shows the couple in happier times, intercut with shots of him waiting for news of Kristy and their baby's condition.

Bush wrote the song specifically for the sequence, writing from a man's (Jake's) viewpoint and matching the words to the visuals which had already been filmed.

The nurse then pulls him out of his reverie, reassuringly putting her hand on his shoulder, smiling and nodding, and telling him about his wife's situation, though we cannot hear what she is saying.

Upon its release as a single, Chris Roberts of Melody Maker praised "This Woman's Work" as "a luscious, spiritually elevating ballad" which is "ecstatic with wintry tragedy" and "sort of 'The Man with the Child in His Eyes' as interpreted by Leonora Carrington".

[8] David Giles of Music Week stated, "Bush is at her most potent when she's in her reflective, late-evening mood, and her fragile, delicate voice combines with sparse piano and Michael Kamen's spot-on orchestral arrangement to create what almost amounts to a lullaby.

Larry Flick from Billboard wrote, "Maxwell's Unplugged cover of the lilting Kate Bush chestnut is a perfect showcase for his voice—precisely because he only takes full advantage of its depth during a few impassioned moments, teasing us with his potential.

The rest of the number is done in falsetto alongside minimalist treble pluckings, a style that expresses convincingly the longing implicit in the lyrics and the melody itself.

"[citation needed] In 2014, musicians Darren Hayes, Pete Murray, Marlisa Punzalan, Nathaniel Willemse and Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers collaborated to record "This Woman's Work" as Hope for Isla and Jude.

The song was recorded to bring hope to Isla and Jude, two young Australian siblings suffering from the rare and fatal disease Sanfilippo Syndrome.