Midwives’ perceptions of the support they provide to new graduates and the role of the health service in Australia: A survey of midwives

Abstract

Problem: Evidence suggests new midwifery graduates are leaving the profession prematurely during the initial graduate years due to workplace stress. Background: Graduate midwives are essential to provide a future midwifery workforce. Support for new graduates in the initial years of practice is essential in retaining them in the midwifery profession. Aim: The aim of this study was to explore midwives’ perspectives of the support they provide new graduates within existing midwifery graduate programs, and their experiences and perceptions of the health service processes to support midwifery graduates. Methods: A cross-sectional study was undertaken with a purposive sample of Australian midwives. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse frequencies and percentages of responses. Spearman's correlational analyses were used to determine associations between the variables. Responses to open-ended questions were analysed by content analysis. Findings: In total, 167 midwives responded to the survey. Just over a third (34.1 %) of midwives felt they had sufficient resources to support a midwifery graduate. Half (50.9 %) of the midwives engaged in reflective practice with midwifery graduates. The majority (97 %) of midwives reported that they felt it was important for midwifery graduates to have a mentor. Discussion: A lack of protected time to provide mentoring opportunities and support new graduates to gain further experience and education was identified. These findings support the need for a formal mentorship program to be introduced. Conclusion: This study offers insights into the perspective of midwives dealing with the realities of striving to support midwifery graduates in their initial years of practice.