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(20171 purported that "increased nursing education enrolments to cater for possible future nursing shortages, (ii) decreased state expenditure on health services and, (iii) graduate employment dictated by staff vacancies rather than ensuring sustainability of the future workforce" (p. 251) are contributing factors. Sample and Data Collection Convenience sampling technique was used, and to ensure sufficient data sampling, two cohorts of graduating students were Invited to participate. The online survey data collection Incorporated closed and opened ended questions about participant engagement with the profession of nursing. All study participants, including the graduates with a previous Diploma of Nursing, provided a 100% response rate to their intention to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board as a registered nurse (RN).
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Objective This S2k guideline of the German Society for Gynecology and Obstetrics (DGGG) and the German Society of Perinatal Medicine (DGPM) contains consensus-based recommendations for the care and treatment of pregnant women, parturient women, women who have recently given birth, and breastfeeding women with SARS-CoV-2 infection and their newborn infants. The aim of the guideline is to provide recommendations for action in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic for professionals caring for the above-listed groups of people. Methods The PICO format was used to develop specific questions. A systematic targeted search of the literature was carried out using PubMed, and previously formulated statements and recommendations issued by the DGGG and the DGPM were used to summarize the evidence. This guideline also drew on research data from the CRONOS registry. As the data basis was insufficient for a purely evidence-based guideline, the guideline was compiled using an S2k-level consensus-based process. After summarizing and presenting the available data, the guideline authors drafted recommendations in response to the formulated PICO questions, which were then discussed and voted on. Recommendations Recommendations on hygiene measures, prevention measures and care during pregnancy, delivery, the puerperium and while breastfeeding were prepared. They also included aspects relating to the monitoring of mother and child during and after infection with COVID-19, indications for thrombosis prophylaxis, caring for women with COVID-19 while they are giving birth, the presence of birth companions, postnatal care, and testing and monitoring the neonate during rooming-in or on the pediatric ward.Copyright © 2023. Thieme. All rights reserved.
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INTRODUCTION: Within obstetrics care, it can be difficult to discuss death and advances directives (AD). Recent maternal illnesses and deaths secondary to COVID-19 highlight the importance of these conversations. There is little available research regarding AD in obstetrics, especially within medical education. This study aimed to establish a baseline of obstetric provider comfort and knowledge with this material, provide education, and then reassess comfort and knowledge. METHODS: Institutional review board committee approval was waived for this study. A pre-intervention survey, including a unique identifier to allow for pairing of pre/post-surveys, was emailed to residents of a large university obstetrics and gynecology department with questions assessing comfort and knowledge of AD. The intervention was a 45-minute lecture covering definitions and local state laws relating to AD. A postsurvey, with identical questions to the presurvey, was sent 2 weeks after the intervention. Only paired responses were analyzed, using paired t test. RESULTS: Twenty-three residents (96% of program) participated in the presurvey;17 (71%) participated in the postsurvey. All were matched to presurvey responses and analyzed. In the presurvey, 41% of respondents were usually or always comfortable identifying surrogate decision makers, which increased to 82% in the postsurvey, a 41% difference (P =.01). With regards to the knowledge-based questions, the mean correct response was 56% in the presurvey and 87% in the postsurvey, a 31% difference (P <.001). CONCLUSION: A simple didactic intervention showed improvement in comfort and knowledge surrounding topics of AD for ob-gyn residents. Additional research relating to patient awareness of AD during pregnancy could be explored. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Obstetrics & Gynecology is the property of Lippincott Williams & Wilkins and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)
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INTRODUCTION: The traditional medical model of prenatal care may miss opportunities for anticipatory guidance and psychosocial support for pregnant people. We describe Stay Home, Stay Connected (SHSC), a virtual, service-learning, pregnancy support group that supplements routine prenatal care. METHODS: Stay Home, Stay Connected was implemented during the acute COVID-19 pandemic and updated in January 2022 in keeping with relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions. The program consists of monthly small-group sessions with 8–10 pregnant people at similar gestational age, led by an obstetric provider (eg, physician, midwife) and medical, midwifery, and social work students. Recorded group classes on mental health and wellness are available on-demand. In our IRB-exempt assessment of SHSC patients from January 2022 to October 2022, we obtained consent and collected surveys at enrollment and after sessions to assess participants' reasons for joining and overall satisfaction. RESULTS: Since program updates, 80 patients have participated in 5 small groups, led by 4 providers and 8 students. Of the 80 patients registered for SHSC, 65 (81%) completed the enrollment survey. The top reasons for joining SHSC were desire for extra support, more information about pregnancy, and connection with other patients. The majority of participants who completed satisfaction surveys, reported sessions were helpful to their learning (32/34, 94%) and feeling supported (25/26, 96%). All participants surveyed reported they would recommend SHSC to other pregnant patients. CONCLUSION: A virtual service-learning pregnancy support group remains feasible and acceptable for participants after the acute COVID-19 pandemic. We are continuing to expand and develop SHSC to fulfill unmet needs in pregnancy. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Obstetrics & Gynecology is the property of Lippincott Williams & Wilkins and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)
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Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in women and its incidence in pregnancy is 1/3000. After the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has created a high risk factor for cancer patients as well as affecting the society. The situation is similar in the process of breast cancer. Despite the fact that cancer patients are risk factors, their follow-up and follow-up will not be interrupted, which will allow them to maintain their current status. The prolongation of the treatment period of the patients complicates the process they are in. In this case, the follow-up period of the patient who was diagnosed with breast cancer in the third trimester of his second pregnancy during the COVID-19 period was discussed. The frequency of follow-up during the postpartum COVID-19 period of the case decreased, and therefore, recurrence was experienced. In cases such as disasters and pandemics, cancer patients should be supported in terms of both physical and mental health. During the follow-up process, patients should be guided in their public health follow-ups, and the frequency of examinations and follow-up processes should be reminded. Midwife-assisted care should be provided during these follow-ups. © 2022, Universitas Negeri Semarang. All rights reserved.
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Speed read Nigeria's president-elect eyes 40 per cent health insurance coverage in two years Ambitious target needs funding, human resources Over 75,000 nurses and midwives left Nigeria in five years [LAGOS] Health experts in Nigeria say the country's president-elect who will be inaugurated on 29 May must prioritise health care and refrain from politicising it. While Nigeria committed to achieving universal health coverage (UHC) by 2030, its National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) established in 2005 makes health insurance coverage voluntary. [...]in May 2022, after two decades of sustained calls by health professionals, a new Act was passed which aimed to provide health insurance for all Nigerians, through a mandatory mechanism and in collaboration with state health insurance agencies.
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The health and wellbeing of nurses and midwives are essential to the quality of care they can provide for people and communities, affecting their compassion, professionalism and effectiveness. Ensuring that working conditions across all settings-in primary, secondary, mental health, community and social careare supporting nurses and midwives in their work, is fundamental to ensuring the best outcomes for people who need health and care services. The coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19) has emerged as a serious health crisis of global proportion. This disease has created health emergencies, which had taken a toll on the wellbeing of many health workers. Particularly, the nursing and midwifery professions have faced numerous challenges causing ethical dilemmas in their practices and exacerbating their psychosocial wellness. In this commentary, we explore the impact of Covid-19 on the nursing and midwifery practices in South Africa.
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Prenatal care is a core competency of family nurse practitioners (FNPs). However, it is often difficult for FNP faculty to locate women's health providers to precept FNP students. This problem was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, as many sites limited the number of students to provide appropriate social distancing. A series of virtual longitudinal standardized patient prenatal scenarios was created for FNP students. The scenarios, 1 per semester, follow a patient through her pregnancy and review core prenatal concepts. The scenarios supplement women's health clinical rotations and provide standardization of experiences for FNP students
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Over the last decade the trend of home-birth rates in the United Kingdom (UK) has remained consistent, with 2.4% of women giving birth at home in 2020.1 Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, maternity services have seen significant changes to visiting policies, delivery of services and the suspension of home-birth services across the UK.2 This paper will explore the evidence regarding the experiences of those women and birthing people who choose home birth, with the aim to identify women's reasons for choosing a home birth during the pandemic. Some dedicated home-birth teams reported increased referral rates for a home birth and an increase in the amount of home births throughout the initial wave. It is unclear why home-birth rates appeared to have increased in the UK during the pandemic, especially since women's access to home birth may have been limited.
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BACKGROUND: Knowledge is lacking about the effects of COVID-19 on nursing students' burnout symptoms. Burnout can lead to negative feelings and behaviours towards learning and poor mental health. AIMS: To describe and compare nursing/midwifery students' burnout, explore differences and detect predictors at two time points through COVID-19. METHODS: Students were offered participation in the spring semesters of 2020 and 2021 (N = 2046), during COVID-19. The response rate was 30-33%. By using reliable and valid instruments, the students' stress and burnout were analysed as well as the students' health and perceived support. RESULTS: Symptoms of academic burnout were higher among 1st and 2nd year BSc students in 2021. On the contrary, 3rd and 4th year students had higher academic and personal burnout than graduate students as well as than 1st and 2nd year students. Regarding academic burnout, 47% of the variability was explained by educational level, support, stress and the interactional effect of stress and support. Collaborational burnout, predicted by the students' educational level and support, explained 7% of the variability in the outcome. Additionally, educational level, and stress, predicted 52% of the variability in personal burnout. CONCLUSION: Educators or student counsellors need to facilitate effective learning practices and offer academic support, specifically during 3rd and 4th year to boost helpful coping strategies and handle uncertainty and stressors related to crises such as COVID-19.
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PROBLEM: Papua New Guinea (PNG) has a high rate of preventable maternal and neonatal deaths. BACKGROUND: Developing midwifery leadership is vital to addressing the current deficits in health outcomes for women and their babies. The PNG Midwifery Leadership Buddy Program responds to this need through leadership training and partnering of midwives across PNG and Australia. Participants in the program undertake a workshop in Port Moresby and commit to a 12-month peer support relationship with a midwife 'buddy'. AIM: To evaluate participants' experiences of the Buddy Program and the impact of the program on leadership skills. METHODS: All 23 midwives who had completed the program were invited to participate in the evaluation. The study used a concurrent mixed methods approach. Qualitative data were collected via interviews and then thematically analysed. Quantitative data were collected via a survey and analysed with descriptive statistics, then findings were triangulated. FINDINGS: Participants reported increased confidence for leadership, action and advocacy. Numerous quality improvement projects were implemented in health services in PNG. Challenges to the success of the program included technological limitations, cultural differences and the COVID-19 pandemic. DISCUSSION: Participants reported the PNG Midwifery Leadership Buddy Program was successful in increasing their leadership skills and collaborative opportunities, as well as strengthening midwifery more broadly. While there were barriers, most participants valued the experience and believed it benefited them professionally and personally CONCLUSION: The Buddy Program provides a practical model for building midwifery leadership capacity that may be transferrable to other contexts.
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Research shows that while inhaling gas and air (Entonox) in labour is safe for mothers and babies, long-term cumulative exposure may carry health risks. Work notice The right to strike The UK government's Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill is, at the time of going to press, at the committee stage in the House of Lords (the first chance for line-by-line examination). Visit bit.ly/ Clementine-register Working mums Maternity leave Careers After Babies research has found that of 848 mothers interviewed, 98% want to return to work after having a child but just 13% can make it work full-time, citing the cost of childcare and lack of flexibility from businesses as the reason. Find out more at hegenbergermedical.com/training Research Healthy eating support Researchers at the University of Hertfordshire are calling for better information on diet and nutrition to be made available to expectant parents.
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Background: Intrinsic features of COVID-19 disease, including the severity of the virus transmission and mortality rates, make it difficult to provide obstetric care to pregnant women. In this regard, telemedicine can provide comprehensive midwifery care relying on new technologies, such as virtual clinic, telehealth, tele-monitoring, m-Health, wearable sensors, and the internet of medical things. The objective of this study is to identify the application and requirements of a telehealth system for midwifery care. Methods: We conducted a literature search from 2019/12/1 to 2022/10/1 using the following electronic scientific databases: Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, and Google Scholar. We carried out hand searches from the reference lists of retrieved studies of journals. Results: We showed that, during COVID-19 pandemic, prenatal care via telehealth increased and telehealth is a good strategy for prenatal and post-partum disease managements. Mental health services are also feasible via telehealth. These new technologies also reduce the risks associated with interpersonal contacts in COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: With the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth became the norm. The future of medical services will be built around this technology and that is a great opportunity to move toward a great evolution. Copyright © 2023, Journal of Iranian Medical Council. All rights reserved. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
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The Covid-19 pandemic has affected the lives of people in many areas of the world. Similarly, international students have also experienced some physical, mental, and social changes during the Covid-19 pandemic. They have not been able to go to their home countries for several reasons, like economic problems, permissions and restrictions, and uncertainty. Therefore, their needs such as physical, financial and psychosocial support should be recognised and met. This study aimed to investigate the lived experiences of international midwifery students in Turkey during the Covid-19 pandemic. Using a phenomenological methodology, 18 in-depth interviews were completed via an online video programme, and a thematic analysis was completed. Eighteen international midwifery students were reached by the snowball technique of the purposive sampling method in a city in the Black Sea region. A content analysis method was applied in order to analyse the data, and the comments were expressed descriptively. Eight themes, and subthemes for each of them, were analysed. The themes are the effects of the pandemic on daily life;health;social life;education;mental health;being infected in Turkey;the changes caused by the pandemic in individuals;and the ways to cope with the pandemic. The study concluded that the students' daily social lives, physical and mental health, and education had been affected by the pandemic. In spite of all its negative sides, the pandemic had some positive contributions for the students, such as helping them to discover and know themselves and become stronger. © Unisa Press 2022.
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There is a need to ensure that healthcare organisations enable their workforces to use digital methods in service delivery. This study aimed to evaluate the current level of digital understanding and ability in nursing, midwifery, and allied health workforces and identify some of the training requirements to improve digital literacy in these health professionals. Representatives from eight healthcare organizations in Victoria, Australia participated in focus groups. Three digital frameworks informed the focus group topic guide that sought to examine the barriers and enablers to adopting digital healthcare along with training requirements to improve digital literacy. Twenty-three participants self-rated digital knowledge and skills using Likert scales and attended the focus groups. Mid-range scores were given for digital ability in nursing, midwifery, and allied health professionals. Focus group participants expressed concern over the gap between their organizations' adoption of digital methods relative to their digital ability, and there were concerns about cyber security. Participants also saw a need for the inclusion of consumers in digital design. Given the widening gap between digital innovation and health workforce digital capability, there is a need to accelerate digital literacy by rapidly deploying education and training and policies and procedures for digital service delivery.
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Background: Maternal and child health (MCH) services have been affected by the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in all countries, including Indonesia. Information regarding the impact of COVID-19 on MCH service access and provision is limited, particularly in the context of rural Indonesian communities. This study aimed to explore the experiences of Indonesian mothers and midwives from a rural regency regarding MCH services delivery during the pandemic. Methods: This study was a sub-study of a pre-existing cohort study conducted in four sub-districts in Banggai, Indonesia, as the qualitative research. This study was conducted from November 2020 to April 2021, involving 21 mothers and six midwives. We selected the participants using snowball sampling. In-depth interviews were conducted in Bahasa. The study used both deductive and inductive approaches for analysis. Data analysis was performed using NVivo v.12. Results: The study identified three themes and eight sub-themes from the analysis incorporating the midwives' and mothers' data. The themes included health service change, perceived barriers to service delivery, and family impact. This study highlights health service changes due to the pandemic, such as relocating the MCH services. Mothers perceived barriers to accessing health services, including distance reasons and fear of COVID-19. Only the shortages of staff affected the midwives in providing optimal services. Conclusion: The pandemic triggered health service changes and caused some barriers to service delivery. This study recommends that the local government and stakeholders should pay more attention to the health service changes according to the mothers' experiences and address barriers to optimize access to MCH services during the pandemic.
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COVID-19 , Child Health Services , Midwifery , Pregnancy , Female , Child , Humans , Mothers , Indonesia/epidemiology , Pandemics , Cohort Studies , COVID-19/epidemiology , Qualitative ResearchABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: In Australia, maternity care services provide care for pregnant and postpartum women and their newborns. The COVID-19 pandemic forced these services to quickly adapt and develop policies and procedures for dealing with transmission in health care facilities, as well as work under public health measures to counter its spread within the community. Despite well-documented responses and adaptations by healthcare systems, no studies have examined the experiences of maternity service leaders through the pandemic. This study aimed to explore the experiences of maternity service leaders, to understand their perspectives on what happened in health services and what was required of a leader during the COVID-19 pandemic in one Australian state. METHODS: A longitudinal qualitative study collected data from 11 maternity care leaders during the pandemic in the state of Victoria. Leaders participated in a series of interviews over the 16-month study period, with a total of 57 interviews conducted. An inductive approach to developing codes allowed for semantic coding of the data, then a thematic analysis was conducted to explore patterned meaning across the dataset. RESULTS: One overarching theme, 'challenges of being a maternity service leader during the pandemic', encompassed participant's experiences. Four sub-themes described the experiences of these leaders: (1) needing to be a rapid decision-maker, (2) needing to adapt and alter services, (3) needing to filter and translate information, and (4) the need to support people. At the beginning of the pandemic, the challenges were most acute with slow guideline development, rapid communications from the government and an urgent need to keep patients and staff safe. Over time, with knowledge and experience, leaders were able to quickly adjust and respond to policy change. CONCLUSION: Maternity service leaders played an important role in preparing and adapting services in accordance with government directives and guidelines while also developing strategies tailored to their own health service requirements. These experiences will be invaluable in designing high quality and responsive systems for maternity care in future crises.
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COVID-19 , Maternal Health Services , Infant, Newborn , Female , Pregnancy , Humans , Pandemics , Delivery of Health Care , Victoria , Qualitative ResearchABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Nurses are often on the frontline of disaster management, providing care to patients with emerging physical, mental, and emotional turbulence, and acting as educators for health promotion and disaster prevention in both rural and urban contexts. However, the literature suggests that nurses are inadequately prepared for disaster response. This study examined preparedness for disaster response among nurses in rural and urban primary healthcare settings in Tanzania. METHODS: This qualitative descriptive study involved purposefully selected qualified nurses and nurse administrators working in rural (n=20) and urban (n=11) primary healthcare facilities in Tanzania. Telephone-based interviews were conducted to gather data that were then analyzed thematically. RESULTS: Five themes emerged from the analysis: previous experiences, technical capacity, current strategies, challenges, and overall preparedness. Previous experiences included personally caring for victims, working in disaster response teams, working in administrative roles during disasters, and conducting community sensitization. Most nurses in rural contexts had not received training on disaster response and relied on past experience, knowledge from nursing school, observing peers, and knowledge from the internet and movies. Current strategies for disaster response included response teams (although these were considered 'weak'), ensuring the availability of equipment and supplies, and infrastructure for victim management. Challenges in disaster response included inadequate resources, understaffing, lack of expertise at primary healthcare facilities, nurses tasked with multiple responsibilities, inadequate technical capacity, fears of infection, poor interpersonal relationships, inadequate community knowledge, poor reporting systems, delayed healthcare seeking, long distances to facilities, and poor road infrastructure. These challenges were more pronounced in rural settings. Most nurses felt they were well prepared to respond to disasters, although this appeared to be rooted in a willingness to provide care rather than having adequate knowledge, skills, and resources for disaster response. Suggestions for better preparing nurses for disaster response included training, increasing essential equipment and medical supplies, increasing the nursing workforce, improving reporting systems, disseminating local guidelines, strengthening disaster response teams, and improving the nursing training curricula to cover disaster management. CONCLUSION: A range of institutional, individual, and community challenges affect nurses' preparedness for disaster response in rural and urban primary healthcare settings. Addressing these challenges requires multiple strategies that extend beyond the capacity building of nurses to strengthen health system disaster preparedness in general, prioritizing rural contexts.
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Disaster Planning , Disasters , Nurses , Humans , Tanzania , Delivery of Health Care , Primary Health CareABSTRACT
Background: It is necessary to use accurate methods of calculating manpower to avoid wasting resources. Given that reproductive health services are an important part of primary health services, it would be useful to apply manpower calculation methods to service providers in related occupational groups. This study calculated the required midwifery manpower in healthcare centres using the Workload Indicator of Staffing Need (WISN) method. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2020 in 276 health centres in Tehran according to the WISN model, in which the list of activities related to reproductive health in the centres under the auspices of the University of Tehran was determined. The available working time, main workload components, and the activity standards (service standards and allowance standards) were determined through a mixed method (direct observation, comments of service providers, and meetings with experts). The volume of services provided over the period of one year prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic was estimated using national statistics. Finally, the required manpower was calculated and compared with the actual workforce. Results: The results showed that currently, Tehran health centres need 34 more staff to provide reproductive health services. The working pressure was calculated as 0.9, and the current allowance factor is 1.31. Based on observations, midwifery capacity is currently not fully and exclusively used. Conclusion: To improve the quality of reproductive health services, it is recommended to eliminate the current shortage of midwives, focus more on special midwifery tasks, and reduce the number of indirect activities of midwives. © 2022 UNISA, University of South Africa, Department of Advanced Nursing Sciences. All rights reserved.