Coventry University had the largest international study of midwifery

COVENTRY University has led the largest ever international study into midwifery leadership.

Led by Dr. Sally Pezaro of the university’s research center for nursing and communities, the study involved participants from 76 countries and was carried out in collaboration with the Nursing Now Challenge and Jhpiego – a non-profit global health organization and the University Johns Hopkins.

The study identifies the ten leadership characteristics that men possess in strong midwifery leaders.

Dr Sally Pezaro said: “Midwives have an incredible impact on people’s lives every day, but unfortunately it is widely recognized that investment in midwifery leadership worldwide has been low.

“Strong nursing leadership leads to increased staff satisfaction and improved safety cultures, but conversely, weak leadership in midwifery has been linked to a range of negative outcomes.

“The lack of understanding of how to lead strongly in the context of midwifery has been a barrier, but we hope this study will help address this issue.”

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Dr Pezaro is a Fellow of the Royal College of Midwives (FRCM), a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and has experience working as a clinical midwife in the UK, The Gambia and Ethiopia.

The study was supported by three recruitment webinars and a total of 429 midwives participated in the study.

It found that the ability to mediate, resilience, empathy, compassion and dedication to the profession are among the 10 traits needed by successful midwifery leaders.

Others include being an evidence-based practitioner, an effective decision-maker, a role model, a visionary and an advocate for both the profession and service users.

The study also found seven factors that could help create environments for midwife leaders to flourish.

These include a clear professional identity, ongoing research into the profession, succession planning and increasing the societal value of midwifery.