VIDM 2023 Programme

Speaker: Tom McEwan and Moira Lewitt

Facilitator: Adetoro Adegoke

Respectful of ‘artistry’ within midwifery, a recent research study conducted with Professor Moira Lewitt explored how midwifery students understand the concept of professionalism and how their professional identity develops during midwifery education.  Midwifery students learn and adopt complex professional behaviours in a variety of academic and clinical settings throughout their educational journey. The aims of this study were to explore how midwifery students understand the concept of professionalism and how their professional identity develops during midwifery education.. The method used a conversation about professionalism with a group of final year midwifery students that was transcribed ‘in the moment’ and immediately performed to the group as poetry. Themes emerging from analysis of the conversation are also presented as poetry.  The results demonstrated that midwifery students, moving between university and practice, emphasise the importance of close connections between these spaces and the role models in them, for learning. External constraints generated a sense of fear and stress that was seen to limit midwives’ ability to properly support the needs of ‘their woman’.  We concluded that the notion of ‘spaces’ is important in maternity care and developing education for future midwives. Poetry is a useful multidimensional tool in research.  This utilised poetry as an innovative multidimensional tool for research.  The process of conducting this research, the key themes identified and the poetry generated will be discussed in this session.

Recording: https://youtu.be/nglnqbG26vs