Perceptions and experiences of midwives regarding the use of the labour care guide at two state hospitals in Khomas region, Namibia
The Labour Care Guide (LCG) is a new tool for monitoring labour, introduced to replace the partograph, which had been used improperly and inconsistently across various contexts. Early research suggests that healthcare practitioners view the LCG as a tool that enhances the quality of care during labour and delivery. Despite these findings, there remains a gap in understanding the long-term impact and sustainability of midwives' engagement with the LCG; hence, there is a need to explore midwives' evolving perceptions and experiences of using the LCG. The purpose of this study was to examine midwives' perceptions and experiences of using the LCG at two state hospitals in the Khomas region of Namibia. This study employed a qualitative transcendental (descriptive) phenomenology design. Purposive sampling and maximum variation sampling were applied. Data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews and analysed through thematic analysis based on descriptive phenomenology. Ethical considerations were all upheld throughout the study. The findings revealed the following themes; midwives' experiences related to the differences between the LCG and the partograph and their implications for practice, midwives' perceptions of the LCG and how these affected their adjustment to using it, along with implications for practice, the LCG is a user-friendly tool that enhances user experiences and management of labour, challenges related to completing the LCG experienced by midwives and navigating from incompetency to expertise in using the LCG and its implications for practice. The findings of this study demonstrated that midwives had both negative and positive perceptions of using the LCG. While early perceptions were shaped by initial exposure to the LCG, later ii perceptions were grounded in the midwives’ experiences of using the LCG. Generally, midwives found the LCG valuable but needed training and adjustments to suit the context
Experiences, Labour Care Guide, Midwives, Perceptions, Namibia, University of Namibia
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations