Thesis (M. Midwifery) -- Australian Catholic University, 2006. / Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Midwifery. Bibliography: p. 206-214. Also available in an electronic format via the internet.

Background This research explored the follow-through experience in three year, pre-registration Bachelor of Midwifery programs in Australia. The follow-through experience involves midwifery students following women on their journey through pregnancy, labour and birth and into the early parenting period. The concept was introduced to midwifery education in Australia in 2001 when it was embedded in the foundational Australian College of Midwives. National Education Standards for Bachelor of Midwifery programs. The inclusion of the follow-through experience in Bachelor of Midwifery education programs was a deliberate strategy to ensure midwifery students would experience midwifery continuity of care. Aims The aims of this research were to: explore the follow-through experience in order to better understand its impact on students, midwifery education providers and midwives, and, to identify the learning that is associated with this experience. Setting This research was conducted in Australia. Students from all three-year pre-registration Bachelor of Midwifery programs were invited to participate. Design A qualitative study was undertaken. In-depth interviews were conducted with key stakeholders who had been involved in the development and implementation of the follow-through experience. Data were collected from former and current Bachelor of Midwifery students through an online survey and telephone interviews. A thematic analysis was undertaken and situated learning and constructivist theories were used to identify whether learning occurred in the context of the follow-through experience. Results The findings provided a unique insight into the follow-through experience from the perception of students and stakeholders. This research established that students do learn from their engagement in this experience. This learning was characterised by the primacy of the relationship with the women. Students also identified the challenges they faced in undertaking these experiences, including problems with recruitment and time commitment. Difficulties were identified around requirements of the follow-through experience, the lack of support at times for students, and the lack of congruence with the existing Australian maternity system. These difficulties were identified as having a significant impact on the students. ability to engage in, and to maximise their learning from, this experience. A conceptual model was developed to provide a synthesis of the results of this research and a framework for effective implementation and management of the follow-through experience. Implications This research has implications for midwifery education, particularly in Australia but also internationally. This experience does indeed provide unique learning opportunities for students. It is however essential that the student is given adequate support to aid their learning and to ensure they gain the most from these experiences. Conclusions The follow-through experience is an innovative education strategy and this research identified that learning occurred within this experience. This learning was identified as being situated in the context of students being placed with women. This research clearly identifies the value of the follow-through experience as an important component of student learning.

Thesis (MEd)--University of South Australia, 1996

Background This research explored the follow-through experience in three year, pre-registration Bachelor of Midwifery programs in Australia. The follow-through experience involves midwifery students following women on their journey through pregnancy, labour and birth and into the early parenting period. The concept was introduced to midwifery education in Australia in 2001 when it was embedded in the foundational Australian College of Midwives. National Education Standards for Bachelor of Midwifery programs. The inclusion of the follow-through experience in Bachelor of Midwifery education programs was a deliberate strategy to ensure midwifery students would experience midwifery continuity of care. Aims The aims of this research were to: explore the follow-through experience in order to better understand its impact on students, midwifery education providers and midwives, and, to identify the learning that is associated with this experience. Setting This research was conducted in Australia. Students from all three-year pre-registration Bachelor of Midwifery programs were invited to participate. Design A qualitative study was undertaken. In-depth interviews were conducted with key stakeholders who had been involved in the development and implementation of the follow-through experience. Data were collected from former and current Bachelor of Midwifery students through an online survey and telephone interviews. A thematic analysis was undertaken and situated learning and constructivist theories were used to identify whether learning occurred in the context of the follow-through experience. Results The findings provided a unique insight into the follow-through experience from the perception of students and stakeholders. This research established that students do learn from their engagement in this experience. This learning was characterised by the primacy of the relationship with the women. Students also identified the challenges they faced in undertaking these experiences, including problems with recruitment and time commitment. Difficulties were identified around requirements of the follow-through experience, the lack of support at times for students, and the lack of congruence with the existing Australian maternity system. These difficulties were identified as having a significant impact on the students. ability to engage in, and to maximise their learning from, this experience. A conceptual model was developed to provide a synthesis of the results of this research and a framework for effective implementation and management of the follow-through experience. Implications This research has implications for midwifery education, particularly in Australia but also internationally. This experience does indeed provide unique learning opportunities for students. It is however essential that the student is given adequate support to aid their learning and to ensure they gain the most from these experiences. Conclusions The follow-through experience is an innovative education strategy and this research identified that learning occurred within this experience. This learning was identified as being situated in the context of students being placed with women. This research clearly identifies the value of the follow-through experience as an important component of student learning.

Background This research explored the follow-through experience in three year, pre-registration Bachelor of Midwifery programs in Australia. The follow-through experience involves midwifery students following women on their journey through pregnancy, labour and birth and into the early parenting period. The concept was introduced to midwifery education in Australia in 2001 when it was embedded in the foundational Australian College of Midwives. National Education Standards for Bachelor of Midwifery programs. The inclusion of the follow-through experience in Bachelor of Midwifery education programs was a deliberate strategy to ensure midwifery students would experience midwifery continuity of care. Aims The aims of this research were to: explore the follow-through experience in order to better understand its impact on students, midwifery education providers and midwives, and, to identify the learning that is associated with this experience. Setting This research was conducted in Australia. Students from all three-year pre-registration Bachelor of Midwifery programs were invited to participate. Design A qualitative study was undertaken. In-depth interviews were conducted with key stakeholders who had been involved in the development and implementation of the follow-through experience. Data were collected from former and current Bachelor of Midwifery students through an online survey and telephone interviews. A thematic analysis was undertaken and situated learning and constructivist theories were used to identify whether learning occurred in the context of the follow-through experience. Results The findings provided a unique insight into the follow-through experience from the perception of students and stakeholders. This research established that students do learn from their engagement in this experience. This learning was characterised by the primacy of the relationship with the women. Students also identified the challenges they faced in undertaking these experiences, including problems with recruitment and time commitment. Difficulties were identified around requirements of the follow-through experience, the lack of support at times for students, and the lack of congruence with the existing Australian maternity system. These difficulties were identified as having a significant impact on the students. ability to engage in, and to maximise their learning from, this experience. A conceptual model was developed to provide a synthesis of the results of this research and a framework for effective implementation and management of the follow-through experience. Implications This research has implications for midwifery education, particularly in Australia but also internationally. This experience does indeed provide unique learning opportunities for students. It is however essential that the student is given adequate support to aid their learning and to ensure they gain the most from these experiences. Conclusions The follow-through experience is an innovative education strategy and this research identified that learning occurred within this experience. This learning was identified as being situated in the context of students being placed with women. This research clearly identifies the value of the follow-through experience as an important component of student learning.

Background This research explored the follow-through experience in three year, pre-registration Bachelor of Midwifery programs in Australia. The follow-through experience involves midwifery students following women on their journey through pregnancy, labour and birth and into the early parenting period. The concept was introduced to midwifery education in Australia in 2001 when it was embedded in the foundational Australian College of Midwives. National Education Standards for Bachelor of Midwifery programs. The inclusion of the follow-through experience in Bachelor of Midwifery education programs was a deliberate strategy to ensure midwifery students would experience midwifery continuity of care. Aims The aims of this research were to: explore the follow-through experience in order to better understand its impact on students, midwifery education providers and midwives, and, to identify the learning that is associated with this experience. Setting This research was conducted in Australia. Students from all three-year pre-registration Bachelor of Midwifery programs were invited to participate. Design A qualitative study was undertaken. In-depth interviews were conducted with key stakeholders who had been involved in the development and implementation of the follow-through experience. Data were collected from former and current Bachelor of Midwifery students through an online survey and telephone interviews. A thematic analysis was undertaken and situated learning and constructivist theories were used to identify whether learning occurred in the context of the follow-through experience. Results The findings provided a unique insight into the follow-through experience from the perception of students and stakeholders. This research established that students do learn from their engagement in this experience. This learning was characterised by the primacy of the relationship with the women. Students also identified the challenges they faced in undertaking these experiences, including problems with recruitment and time commitment. Difficulties were identified around requirements of the follow-through experience, the lack of support at times for students, and the lack of congruence with the existing Australian maternity system. These difficulties were identified as having a significant impact on the students. ability to engage in, and to maximise their learning from, this experience. A conceptual model was developed to provide a synthesis of the results of this research and a framework for effective implementation and management of the follow-through experience. Implications This research has implications for midwifery education, particularly in Australia but also internationally. This experience does indeed provide unique learning opportunities for students. It is however essential that the student is given adequate support to aid their learning and to ensure they gain the most from these experiences. Conclusions The follow-through experience is an innovative education strategy and this research identified that learning occurred within this experience. This learning was identified as being situated in the context of students being placed with women. This research clearly identifies the value of the follow-through experience as an important component of student learning.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2004. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 275-289).

BACKGROUND: Mental health problems are of serious concern across Europe. A major barrier to the realisation of good mental health and well-being is stigma and discrimination. To date there is limited knowledge or understanding of mental health nurses' attitudes towards mental illness and individuals experiencing mental health problems. No previous study has been conducted in Malta that addresses this aim, and prior to this study the attitudes of nurses and midwives towards mental illness were unknown. This study is the first of its kind to sample the nursing and midwifery population of an entire country. This study is also the first to attempt to compare the attitudes of nurses according to the years within a mental health setting as well as a comparison between attitudes and the different mental health settings. To the researcher’s knowledge this study is also the first to include a midwifery population within the comparisons. OBJECTIVES: To identify the attitudes of Maltese nurses and midwives towards mental illness and also the investigation of factors that contribute to the formation of attitudes towards mental illness. DESIGN: A nation-wide cross sectional questionnaire survey. SETTINGS: All Maltese state-owned hospitals, departments, units and clinics employing nurses and midwives. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 1483 nurses and midwives participated in this study, representing all the various nursing and midwifery grades and work settings. METHODS: Data were collected using The Community Attitudes towards the Mentally Ill (CAMI) scale, which is a 40-item self-report questionnaire. Data were analysed using quantitative methods using SPSS ver.21. RESULTS: Maltese nurses and midwives hold a positive attitude towards mental illness. Positive attitudes are also seen for each of the 3 subscales of the CAMI tool, namely Fear and Exclusion, Social Control and Goodwill. This study concurs with existing literature and also identifies the importance of education in the formation of attitudes. Results show that Registered Mental Health nurses hold the highest attitudinal score. Apart from education and professional grade, age, years in service and working specifically within the mental health field also seem to infer on the attitudes of Maltese nurses and midwives towards mental illness. CONCLUSIONS: Understanding the variables influencing nurses’ and midwives’ attitudes towards mental illness is critical to deliver effective care. Although Education has been identified as the most influential variable in this study, influencing variables only account for 6.9% of the total variation in the responses. This implies that other predictors exist that affect attitudes, thus further research is warranted.

The thesis considers primary, contemporaneous documents and secondary sources concerning Florence Nightingale, her motives and experiences with the profession of midwifery. The thesis sets Nightingale within her family context and that of mid Victorian England, drawing on previous biographies, an autobiographical account (Cassandra), historical evidence and literature. The main events investigated take place following her return from the Crimean War and are focused on the work of Nightingale in relation to the profession of midwifery, childbirth, infection and maternal mortality, placing Nightingale in the English and European nineteenth century midwifery context and investigating the rationale for the commissioning of the Nightingale School for Midwives at King's College Hospital, London in 1862 followed by its subsequent closure five years later and the publication of Notes on Lying-in Institutions in 1871. The two events are linked, although the focus of the research is an investigation of evidence to substantiate Nightingale's reason for commissioning a training school for midwives. Evidence is ascertained through life documents including biographies, letters and other contemporaneous documents written by and to her or pertaining to the work, in particular, of the Nightingale Fund. These are reviewed using the biographical method and Nightingale's rationale is finally exposed within a complex web of personal and organisational inter-relationships.

Parenting a son or daughter who has an intellectual disability is typically framed as being very stressful and has been reported to lead to poorer physical health, mental wellbeing and earlier mortality than for parents of typically developing children. While the stress that comes with parenting a child who has intellectual disabilities is undeniable, some parents also report that their child has brought about a positive change in their lives. The aim of this study therefore, was to explore whether there was a relationship between parents who identify positive aspects of parenting their child with itellectual disabilities and their slef-reported health and mental wellbeing. A two-phase sequential mixed methods study was undertaken between September 2013 and September 2015 and a reflexive approach was used by the researcher throughout. The study was underpinned by the theoretical paradigm of critical realism and the philosophical worldview of pragmatism. In phase I, seventeen face-to-face semi-structured interviews were undertaken to elicit how and in what way parents described a positive aspect of parenting their son or daughter. Seven key themes were identified which served as the basis for locating an existing scale which represented the positive aspects. The scale chosen was the posttraumatic growth inventory underpinned by one of the shattered assumptions theories of posttraumatic growth. Phase II explored the relationship between posttraumatic growth, health and mental wellbeing through an online survey of these parents (N=576). Posttraumatic growth was found to be a significant predictor of mental wellbeing, but not of general health. Potential explanations were explored. A lack of clarity between the theoretical underpinning of the construct and the terms used to describe, measure and report positive aspects, posttraumatic growth and/or benefit finding were identified and require further investigation. The study offers new knowledge in relation to the experience and impact of parenting a son or daughter who has intellectual disabilities and the potential for utility in professional practice is explored.