Document Type
Article
Department
School of Nursing and Midwifery, Pakistan
Abstract
Objective: On the-job training of Community Midwives (CMWs) is of critical importance in enabling midwives to provide services that meet standards of quality care. The objective of this study was to assess the intervention of an internship for CMWs that would increase their ability to provide quality maternal, newborn, and child health services.
Method: A pre and post-intervention design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of an internship of 32 working days. Validated questionnaire was used to assess the CMWs’ knowledge and skills before and after the intervention. Overall, 252 CMWs from 14 districts of the Sindh and Punjab provinces of Pakistan participated in the study.
Result: The intervention improved both the knowledge and skills of the midwives. The pre and post skills and knowledge assessments demonstrated statistically significant increases in the mean scores (p <0.0001).
Conclusion: Challenges were encountered in organizing and accessing internship sites and experienced mentors. However, the study found that the internship program helpful for the CMWs to enhance their knowledge and hands-on practice. We recommend that it be continued in future for this cadre of midwives.
Recommended Citation
Lakhani, A, Jan, R, Mubeen, K, Karimi, S, Shahid, S, Sewani, R, Baig, M, & Adnan, F. Strengthening the knowledge and skills of community midwives in Pakistan through clinical practice internships. Journal of Asian Midwives. 2016;3(2):26–38.
