Evidence Based Midwifery Abstracts: December 2011 Themed issue: African research

Midwives magazine: Issue 7 :: 2011

Evidence Based Midwifery is the RCM’s quarterly journal featuring in-depth academic research. Here is the summary of contents from the most recent issue, December 2011.

Editorial: A snapshot of African research presented at the ICM 29th Triennial Congress 2011, Durban
Marlene Sinclair
This special edition of Evidence based midwifery highlights some of the issues that midwives in Africa are researching and provides an illuminative picture of the challenges facing the World Health Organization, women, practitioners, educators and researchers.

Factors influencing counselling for HIV testing of pregnant women as perceived by lay counsellors
Karin Minnie, Hester Klopper and Christa van der Walt
In South Africa (SA), many HIV-positive women and their babies do not benefit from strategies limiting mother-to-child transmission because of their unknown HIV status. The quality of counselling for HIV testing may influence whether or not a pregnant woman is tested. In SA, community members are trained as lay counsellors to provide this service. A qualitative approach was used to gain the perspectives of counsellors based in the north-west province of SA. Findings rendered valuable information for more effective counselling.

Pasteurisation of expressed breastmilk as in-home procedure to limit mother-to-child transmission of HIV: a systematic review
Wilma ten Ham, Christa van der Walt and Karin Minnie
When HIV-positive mothers decide to breastfeed, pasteurisation of breastmilk could be a safe way to inactivate HI type 1 virus. Two pasteurisation methods – flash-heating and pretoria pasteurisation – can be used as an in-home procedure. This paper is a systematic review and compares the evidence on these two methods. Both were reported as safe in inactivating the HI virus. However, nutritional and protective safety could not be confirmed. Insufficient evidence exists of the feasibility and acceptability of both methods.

Caring in clinical practice: experiences and perceptions of learner midwives
Mmajapi Chokwe and Susan Wright
There is growing concern about the lack of caring in midwifery clinical practice. This paper reports on the method and findings of a qualitative and phenomenological study into the issue of caring. Data from 48 diaries and two focus groups were analysed. Care of the women and midwife-related themes emerged, each with caring and uncaring as major categories. The findings illustrated that the learner midwives were familiar with, and internalised the meaning of, caring from the theoretical facilitation, however, they did not always experience caring in clinical practice.

Factors influencing the utilisation of postnatal care at one week and six weeks among mothers at Zomba Central Hospital in Malawi
Betty Sakala and Abigail Kazembe
This is a descriptive study using a convenience sample of 154 mothers attending the under-five clinics with infants aged between eight and 12 months for postnatal care in Malawi. The aim of the study was to identify the factors influencing the utilisation of the postnatal services provided. The major finding from the study was the role of the midwife in providing advice to women on the importance of attending postnatal services.

Preceptorship for midwifery practice in Africa: challenges and opportunities
Jemima A Dennis-Antwi
The issue of preceptorship in Ethiopia, Ghana, Uganda and Zambia was the subject for this qualitative study. With a sample of 100 participants, including midwifery tutors, preceptors, midwives and key stakeholders from the maternity services, the study found that the current systems are failing to provide standardised, supported preceptorship programmes. This in turn has major implications for future education programmes and service delivery, and will ultimately impact on efforts to reduce maternal and infant mortality.  


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