Emergency training for maternity staff in Scotland receives good feedback

Scotland’s system for training midwives in intrapartum care has received a positive evaluation from a review by the University of the West of Scotland.

The Scottish Multiprofessional Maternity Development Programme (SMMDP) was introduced in 2002 in response to government recommendations for maternity staff in all areas of Scotland to receive sufficient training and support to cope with obstetric and neonatal emergencies.
 
The study, commissioned by NHS Education for Scotland, assessed the programme against NHS Scotland’s Quality Strategy between October 2010 and March 2011. It was last evaluated in 2007.

It was found to be a relevant, evidence-based and a quality-assured method of training multi-professionals within maternity services. Participants in the SMMDP said it was ‘an enjoyable, beneficial and effective mode of training, which increased their knowledge, confidence and competence and prepared them to carry out their role and advanced roles, such as examination of newborns’. It was also judged to be cost-effective.

Participants concluded that it should remain a national evidence-based training programme used by all professionals and non-professionals involved in providing maternity care across Scotland. However, financial restraints within NHS Boards were identified by some respondent as a challenge in attending training.