A survey of midwifery graduates’ opinions about midwifery education in Iran: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background Attaining high-quality education requires continuous evaluation and revision of the curriculum. The view of the graduate students can provide valuable insight into the necessary evaluations and revisions. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the opinions of midwifery graduates about midwifery education in Iran Methods This was a descriptive cross-sectional study and the research data were collected through a census sampling procedure from all (82) midwifery graduates of the Nursing and Midwifery School of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences between 2018 and 2020. The data collection instrument was a validated researcher-made questionnaire derived from the Graduation Questionnaire (GQ) developed by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). The data were then analyzed using SPSS 22. Results In this study, about 62% of the graduates were satisfied with the quality of the midwifery education they had received during the four-year program. Moreover, 61% of the graduates maintained that theoretical courses were well-integrated with the clinical experience they needed. The quality of the internships in different wards and departments was also evaluated from the viewpoints of the graduates, and the results indicated that they were relatively satisfied with their internship experiences. However, only 40% of the graduates were satisfied with the quality of their clinical evaluation, since they faced the most significant challenges in the clinical and maternity wards (47%) with the midwifery staff and gynecology residents and found the quality of facilities in the clinical program to be lacking. According to the participants, the quality of teaching was not good for some courses such as biochemistry and microbiology. Conclusion It seems that the midwifery curriculum needs to be constantly revised, aiming to improve student satisfaction with their midwifery education. Some effective measures in this regard are employing experienced professors, developing cooperation between midwifery instructors and clinical departments, and trying to improve the educational environment. Attention to the improvement of facilities and equipment and agreement between the content of the theoretical education and practical topics are also recommended to improve the quality of midwifery education.

An evaluation of the effectiveness of an updated pre-service midwifery curriculum integrated with emergency obstetrics and newborn care in Kenya: a cluster randomised controlled trial

“…Although there is demonstrated value for mentoring of educators, overall institutional investments and reinforcements are urgently needed to improve the overall quality of teaching and practice. The lack of or inadequate faculty (educators and clinical instructors), inadequate clinical placement sites with low exposure to emergency obstetric cases, and weak clinical supervision and mentoring reported in this study are possible challenges for effective learning (12,18,20,73,75). These challenges determine the quality of midwifery graduates with the expected requisite ICM competencies as skilled health personnel.…”

Factors Influencing Midwifery Students’ Decision to Choose the Midwifery Education Program in Albania

“…Another interesting result was that 76.92% agreed about choosing to study midwifery to make a career in the future. The perception that midwifery was a career, not just a job, was dominant [18]. The opportunity to broaden career and achieve long-term aims were noted; a challenging career and opportunities to upgrade the qualification.…”

A Bibliometric Analysis of Research Articles on Midwifery Based on the Web of Science

“…However, research output remains an important indicator of both the progress in the midwifery profession and the quality of healthcare services in any country. [7][8][9][10][11][12][13] Although midwifery research in China is continuously developing, most of the research is still limited to the stage of localization and exploration of related influencing factors, and it is necessary to further expand and deepen the focus of research, and there is still a certain gap between our research and some developed countries, and it is necessary to continue to strive to increase the pace of midwifery research in our country. 14 At present, most scholars' studies have evaluated the influencing factors of waiting quality, treatment options for different stages of labor, and the effects of interventions through experimental studies or investigative studies.…”