Carmel Bradshaw

Midwifery education in Ireland--The quest for modernity.

Midwifery education in Ireland has undergone significant changes in recent years including the introduction of direct entry midwifery programmes and a transfer of education to the university sector. While this has provided increased educational opportunities for midwives, the challenge for midwife educators is to prepare students for the increasing complexities of maternity care with a focus on obstetric risk and maternal morbidities with the need to educate midwifery students to support normality and provide woman centred care. The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland has recently produced new Standards and Requirements for midwifery education and Practice Standards for midwives. This article provides information on midwifery education in Ireland and the documents that support the development of the profession.

Working and learning: Post-registration student midwives' experience of the competency assessment process

AIM to explore student midwives experiences of the Clinical Competency Assessment process utilised on the Higher Diploma in Midwifery (18 month) programme. BACKGROUND the assessment of clinical skills and practice has traditionally been an integral part of midwifery educational programmes; however the method of clinical assessment has changed and developed. Similar to other countries, in Ireland assessment of clinical practice is achieved through the utilisation of a broad competency framework provided by the regulatory body, An Bord Altranais (2005) which is yet to be evaluated from a midwifery perspective. METHOD a descriptive qualitative study was undertaken once ethical approval had been granted by the Universitys Ethics Committee. All student midwives (n=20) in one cohort were invited to participate and nine students were interviewed. Interviews were tape recorded. Data were analysed using Burnards (2006) framework. FINDINGS the process of competency assessment was perceived by many of the students to facilitate continuous assessment of clinical practice but there were issues in relation to the language and the number of competencies to be assessed. There were challenges also associated with the written evidence required as part of the assessment with many of the students questioning the usefulness of this in a clinical assessment. A variety of supports were identified and utilised by the students. Continuity and availability of preceptors were noted to be factors impacting on completion of the assessment as were the competing demands of clinical care. RECOMMENDATIONS the findings of this small study are congruent with much of the international literature focusing on clinical competency models. Consideration needs to be given to identifying and integrating into practice, a clearly defined process for competency assessment, by all the relevant stakeholders. An opportunity for feedback throughout the process is considered very significant and the mechanism for this needs to be made explicit in any competency assessment documentation Competency documentation currently in use needs to be reviewed in light of the findings of this study and the rationale for inclusion of a written evidence component needs to be carefully considered. Further research is warranted in relation to the effectiveness of the competency tool in assessing competency in practice.

Employing a Qualitative Description Approach in Health Care Research

A qualitative description design is particularly relevant where information is required directly from those experiencing the phenomenon under investigation and where time and resources are limited. Nurses and midwives often have clinical questions suitable to a qualitative approach but little time to develop an exhaustive comprehension of qualitative methodological approaches. Qualitative description research is sometimes considered a less sophisticated approach for epistemological reasons. Another challenge when considering qualitative description design is differentiating qualitative description from other qualitative approaches. This article provides a systematic and robust journey through the philosophical, ontological, and epistemological perspectives, which evidences the purpose of qualitative description research. Methods and rigor issues underpinning qualitative description research are also appraised to provide the researcher with a systematic approach to conduct research utilizing this approach. The key attributes and value of qualitative description research in the health care professions will be highlighted with the aim of extending its usage.