Lived experiences of undergraduate nursing students in midwifery practice at selected rural hospitals of South Africa

Abstract

Background

Midwifery practice is a requirement in the integrated undergraduate nursing programme which includes general, midwifery, community, and psychiatric nursing disciplines. Students are placed in these clinical areas for learning experiences. Students’ experiences in midwifery practice are mostly overwhelming due to the nature of the services rendered. This makes them have mixed feelings of anxiety and excitement. These experiences might hinder or enhance learning.

Objective

The study sought to explore student nurses’ experiences during placement in midwifery practice.

Methods

A phenomenological, qualitative approach was used to obtain the experiences of students in midwifery practice. Nonprobability purposive sampling was used to sample midwifery practice areas and nursing students. Measures to ensure trustworthiness were ensured. Ethical considerations were ensured. Data was collected through focus groups of 6–7 members each and analysed using Tesch’s open coding method. Data was collected over a period of nine months. Data was collected until saturation was reached.

Results

Two main themes that emerged from the findings are: positive and negative experiences which both impacted their clinical learning.

Conclusion

Findings revealed that students view midwifery training as fascinating as they were the first people to hold babies at birth. However, there are challenges like fear of not meeting learning outcomes and fear of making errors which require the support of professional nurses.

Keywords:

• Clinical learning
• clinical environment
• lived experiences
• midwifery practice
• nursing students

REVIEWING EDITOR:

• May Cheng, Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

SUBJECTS:

• Nurse Education and Management
• Ethics and professional values
• Nursing research
• Midwifery

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank the University and the University staff Development Programme (USDP) for their support during the research and all the students who participated in the study.

Authors contributions

JLM was the main project leader responsible for conceptualization, writing methodology, data collection and analysis, sourcing funds, and drafting the manuscript. TRL assisted in drafting the manuscript and reviewing the manuscript, literature search, and data analysis.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

Transcripts and audio recordings used to analyse data in the current study are available from the corresponding authors on request.

Additional information

Funding

The study was funded by the University research fund and the University Staff Development Program (USDP).

Notes on contributors

Julia Langanani Mafumo

Dr. Julia Langanani Mafumo is a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Advanced Nursing Science at the University of Venda, Limpopo Province, South Africa. She holds a Doctoral Degree in Nursing. She has an experience of 28 years in the higher education sector. She is the clinical coordinator for Undergraduate Nursing Programmes where her work entails coordinating student allocations in the clinical facilities and doing clinical accompaniment and support. She is passionate about clinical learning, competency and the professional socialisation of student nurses. Additionally, she has written published articles in peer-reviewed journals on clinical education topics. She also supervises students for Masters and Doctoral studies. She is an external examiner for other Universities in the country.

Takalani Rhodah Luhalima

Dr Takalani Rhoda Luhalima is a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Advanced Nursing Science at the University of Venda, Limpopo Province, South Africa. She holds a Ph.D. degree. She has worked for more than 14 years in Higher Education Institutions. Supervisors Honours, Masters, and Doctoral postgraduate students. Her research interest includes Nursing Management, Nursing Education, with an emphasis on leadership and inclusive education. Presents research papers locally and internationally, also published book chapters and articles on management and inclusive education in various national and international in peer-reviewed journals. She also evaluates book chapters and manuscripts from accredited journals.