'She sort of shines': midwives' accounts of 'good' midwifery and 'good' leadership.
OBJECTIVE
to explore midwives' accounts of the characteristics of 'good' leadership and 'good' midwifery.


METHODS
a phenomenological interview survey. Participants were asked about what made both good and poor midwives and leaders.


METHODS
two maternity departments within National Health Service trusts in the North West of England.


METHODS
qualified midwives, selected by random sampling stratified to encompass senior and junior grades.


METHODS
thematic analysis, carried out manually.


RESULTS
ten midwives were interviewed. Sixteen codes and six sub-themes were generated. Across the responses, two clear dimensions (themes) were identified, relating on the one hand to aspects of knowledge, skill and competence (termed 'skilled competence'), and on the other hand to specific personality characteristics (termed 'emotional intelligence'). This study suggests that the ability to act knowledgeably, safely and competently was seen as a basic requirement for both clinical midwives and midwife leaders. The added element which made both the midwife and the leader 'good' was the extent of their emotional capability.


CONCLUSIONS
this small-scale in-depth study could form the basis for hypothesis generation for larger scale work in this area in future. The findings offer some reinforcement for the potential applicability of theories of transformational leadership to midwifery management and practice.
Byrom
Sheena
S
East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust and University Central Lancashire, Tower View Offices, Royal Blackburn Hospital, Blackburn BB2 3HH, UK. Sheena.byrom@elht.nhs.uk
Downe
Soo
S
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence; D056348:Emotional Intelligence; D004645:Empathy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007857:Leadership; D008880:Midwifery; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D011247:Pregnancy; D036301:Qualitative Research; D006113:United Kingdom