Factors that contribute to midwives staying in midwifery: A study in one area health service in New South Wales, Australia

Abstract

Objective: The Australian health workforce is experiencing workforce shortages like many other countries. Managing retention is one important element of workforce planning. Determining the drivers of retention in midwifery can assist workforce planning. The objective of this study was to determine the factors that contribute to the retention of midwives, that is, why do midwives stay?Design: A descriptive design was undertaken in two phases. Phase One used focus groups to adapt a questionnaire used in the 'Why Midwives Stay 'study in England for the Australian context. Phase Two used the questionnaire to collect qualitative and quantitative data. Setting:One area health service in New South Wales, Australia.Participants: 392 midwives employed in the area health service either full-time, part-time or on a casual basis were invited to participate and 209 (53%) responded. Findings:The majority of respondents were women aged 23-69 years (mean age 42 years). Just over half had received their midwifery qualification through the hospital-based system which was usual prior to 1994 reflecting the age of the cohort. The top three reasons for staying in midwifery were 'I enjoy my job', 'I am proud to be a midwife' and 'I get job satisfaction'. Job satisfaction was received when midwives felt that they made a difference to women, had positive interactions with women in their care and saw women happy. The motivation to keep going was achieved through having a positive outlook; having job satisfaction; and, having work colleagues with a sense of belonging. Implications for practice:The findings have implications for the organisation of care, models of care, and management systems. Health services and departments of health need to consider these issues especially in an environment of workforce shortages. Addressing the way care is arranged and how staff are supported may lead to higher retention rates, thus reducing costs.

The challenges facing midwifery educators in sustaining a future education workforce

“…These findings reinforce a wealth of literature emerging over the past ten years with regard to research related to turnover and intention to stay in both nursing and midwifery practice (Buchan 2011, Tourangeau et al 2009, Sullivan et al 2011, Hayes et al 2006 and in nurse education (Cash et al 2009b, Gormley 2003. So, whilst there is a paucity of literature from the education workforce, any threat to the retention of midwives in practice is likely to have an impact on the academy.…”

“…In spite of their small team, this study emphasises the importance of support from each other as well as from their professional lead as previously recognised in both nursing and midwifery research related to the retention of practising professionals (Sullivan et al 2011, Tourangeau et al 2009.…”

“…Job satisfaction, a positive work environment, good relationships with students, autonomy, feeling supported and valued by colleagues and managers seem to be motivators to remain in post, and this is reinforced in the literature by those in nursing and midwifery practice across the globe (Sullivan et al 2011, Sandall 2011, Tourangeau et al 2009. In spite of their small team, this study emphasises the importance of support from each other as well as from their professional lead as previously recognised in both nursing and midwifery research related to the retention of practising professionals (Sullivan et al 2011, Tourangeau et al 2009.…”

“…Shortages of midwives and other health professionals have been and remain an international concern(World Health Organisation (WHO) 2006, Hirosawa 1968, Karkinen 1974, Burslem 1979, Wray et al 2009, Sullivan et al 2011, complicated by problems associated with effective deployment in terms of geography, time and skill-sets in some parts of the world (Buchan 2011). A quality midwifery service is central to the United Nation's (2007) millennium development goals to reduce maternal, newborn and infant mortality and morbidity worldwide.…”

Sustainability and resilience in midwifery: A discussion paper

“…Sustainability and resilience are concepts which have recently come into use in the midwifery workforce literature (Wakelin & Skinner, 2007;Sullivan, Lock & Homer, 2011, Yoshida & Sandall, 2013. These notions have appeared within the literature around sustainable organisations (Kossek et al, 2014).…”