Preparedness of newly qualified midwives to deliver clinical care: an evaluation of pre-registration midwifery education through an analysis of key events

摘要

Objective: this study was part of a larger project commissioned to ascertain whether midwife teachers bring a unique contribution to the preparation of midwives for practice. The aim of this phase was to determine whether the student midwives' educational programme had equipped them to practise competently after entry to the professional register.Design: this was a prospective, longitudinal qualitative study, using participant diaries to collect data.Setting: data were collected from newly qualified midwives during the initial six months after they commenced their first post as a qualified midwife.Participants: the potential participants were all student midwives who were completing their education at one of six Universities (three in England, one in Scotland, one in Wales and one in Northern Ireland). Diary data were submitted by 35 newly qualified midwives; 28 were graduates of the three year programme and seven of the shortened programme.