Midwife interactions with birth support people in Melbourne, Australia.
OBJECTIVE
to investigate midwife experience of the presence of birth support people in the delivery suite.


METHODS
eighteen midwives working in three hospitals in Melbourne, Australia, who were interviewed over a 3 month period in 2001.


METHODS
informant views were gathered via semi-structured interviews. Interviews were transcribed and analysed for key concepts and central themes that were then compared to existing literature.


RESULTS
all midwives were supportive of the presence of birth support people to assist birthing women. The midwives were of the view that birth support people were not well prepared for the birth process, however, and did not generally have clear ideas about what support was necessary or required. Midwives indicated that the presence of birth support people in the birth room added to their workload and sometimes increased the difficulty of providing care to the birthing woman.


CONCLUSIONS
while the presence of birth support people is now commonplace in most Western medical systems, the presence of these birth support people may result in additional workload and stress for midwives. This aspect of the work of midwives requires greater investigation.
Maher
JaneMaree
J
Centre for Women's Studies and Gender Research, School of Political and Social Inquiry, Monash University, Clayton Campus, Melbourne VIC 3800, Australia. janemaree.maher@arts.monash.edu.au
D000328:Adult; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care / Q000592:standards; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D036861:Delivery, Obstetric / Q000451:nursing*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008880:Midwifery / Q000592:standards*; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D015403:Nursing Evaluation Research; D009746:Nursing, Team / Q000458:organization & administration; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D011247:Pregnancy; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014739:Victoria; D014789:Visitors to Patients