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Best practice in Maternity Units
Midwifery Symposium highlights need for leadership in maternity wards
The annual Midwifery Symposium at SG Lourens Nursing College in Pretoria on 29 July highlighted the great need for consistent and independent leadership among midwives in maternity units across the country.
With South Africa faced with a challenge of reducing child mortality rate before 2015 deadline as per Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), more energies have been put on strategies to reduce the country's high child mortality which often result in millions of rands in payment from litigations.
Addressing the Symposium that was attended by midwives, academics, doctors, nurse educators and student nurses under the theme 'Back to basics', Ms Tiny Magano, Acting CEO at Jubilee Hospital in Tshwane said: "This needs leadership in our wards at all times. Midwife is an independent leader who is expected to ensure availability of all resources in the unit.
"We need to have vigilant monitoring in the wards and good visual learning material. Good handover reports come second to none, which is often impossible because of lateness by some nurses.
She said midwives can cue from the 2013 UN report by Sectretary Ban Ki Moon titled, 'A life of dignity for all' on the state of world's midwifery today.
"You can only influence if u can inspire others in a way that find their inner voice," she added.
In addition to the NDP 2030 which talks to this, there is 'A pathway to health' that midwives must spearhead its implementation.
On the question 'How to close the gap in those maternity wards?' She midwives must:
Strenghten access to safe reproductive health
Improve child survival and improve access to ART.
While many still die as a result of lack of access to ART, but a lot of motalities are due to negligence.
Strenghten access to safe reproductive health
Improve child survival and improve access to ART.
While many still die as a result of lack of access to ART, but a lot of motalities are due to negligence.
Need to stick to and live by the country's constitution which supercedes any other law: the right to life.
Provision of skilled midwives. The effective referral systems and networks must be mastered.
"We've got the 10 recommendations from the 'Saving our mothers' reports," she added.
"For us to be able to realise the goals, we need to be able to come up with our own strategies in maternity units which are costable and doable.
"For us to be able to realise the goals, we need to be able to come up with our own strategies in maternity units which are costable and doable.
But the midwife will remain the best teacher to the doctors and families."
Acting Chief Nursing and midwifery Officer in Gauteng, Dr Elizabeth Kaye-Petersen said midwives need to strenghten teaching at clinical settings and that students must also develop hunger to learn from midwives.
But both midwives and doctors complained that government does not provide the required basic equipment for health practioners to do their work. They said some facilities in the townships don't have equipment as basic as the one for BP.
