Development and Assessment of Professional Competences among Polish Nursing Students during a 3-Year Education Cycle Trying

What it takes to develop self-confidence and competence in midwifery students for midwifery practice

BACKGROUND

Midwifery practice is multidimensional and complex in supporting women's reproductive health. Midwives provide care through pregnancy, birth, and the puerperium and may extend to sexual and reproductive health. Midwifery education must develop self-confidence and competence within each midwifery student. This must be learned before registering as a midwife and entering midwifery practice. Little is known about how educational experiences influence midwifery students' confidence.

AIM

The aim of this study was to understand the educational experiences that influence self-confidence and competence development among midwifery students.

DESIGN AND METHODS

A qualitative descriptive design was used in this study. Data were collected through seven focus group discussions with 37 midwifery students. The discussions were recorded and professionally transcribed. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

The analysis resulted in four themes: (1) Understanding the concept of competence, (2) developing competence in midwifery practice, (3) obstacles to developing competence, and (4) the importance of self-confidence to be competent. The development of self-confidence and competence is gained through acquiring knowledge and skills, participating in research, undertaking clinical and simulated practice, attending seminars, and engaging in independent learning.

CONCLUSION

Midwifery students described how the increase in self-confidence can lead to an increase in competence, enabling the provision of high-quality midwifery services.

Self-Assessment of Health Professionals' Cultural Competence: Knowledge, Skills, and Mental Health Concepts for Optimal Health Care

Current research often refers to cultural competence to improve health care delivery. In addition, it focuses on the cultural uniqueness of each health service user for optimal personalized care. This study aimed to collect self-assessment data from health professionals regarding their cultural competence and to identify their development needs. A mixed methods design was adopted using the Cultural Competence Self-assessment Checklist of the Central Vancouver Island Multicultural Society. This was translated into Greek, validated, and then shared with health professionals in Cyprus. Subsequently, a semi-structured interview guide was designed and utilized. This was structured in exactly the same question categories as the questionnaire. Data collection took place between October 2021 and May 2022, and convenience sampling was used to recruit 499 health scientists in Cyprus. The sample comprised doctors, nurses, psychologists, midwives, social workers, and physiotherapists. Subsequently, 62 interviews were conducted with participants from the same specialties. The results showed that (compared to other health professionals) nurses and psychologists are more sensitive to issues of cultural competence. It would appear that the more socially oriented sciences had better-prepared healthcare staff to manage diversity in context. However, there is a gap between knowledge and skills when comparing doctors to nurses; they seem to be more skilled and willing to intervene actively in cases of racist behavior or problem-solving. In conclusion, participants identified the importance of their cultural competence; they also realized the importance of optimal planning of personalized health care. There is a significant need for continuous and specialized cultural competence training for all health professions.