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The faces of mentoring in New Zealand: Realities for the new graduate midwife

Abstract:

This research examines the experiences of nine graduate midwives who were mentored in their first year of self-employed practice. The research used a feminist phenomenological approach, which gave me the opportunity to honour and respect what the midwives shared with me. In-depth semi-structured interviews were used to collect data that traced the transition the midwife makes in becoming an autonomous practitioner and the importance of a supportive mentoring relationship in assisting this journey. Being a self-employed midwife carrying a caseload can involve a range of personal and professional stresses. Midwives moving into self-employed practice, although registered competent to practice, identified that they wanted support to help establish confidence and discuss professional issues.

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first year of practice, graduate midwives, mentoring, transition to autonomous practitioner