To facilitate your reflective skill development you are required to complete a reflective piece of writing for a minimum of 10 continuity of care cases, including each of the four (4) newly recruited women from term three (3).

By week 14 you need to have completed 10 comprehensive reflective journals that include a minimum of:

- 4 antenatal visits

- labour/intrapartum care of at least 6 women

- 2 postnatal visits

(Additional guidance on writing a reflective journal is available on the Moodle site for this subject.)

Written essay: 3000 words

This written essay provides you with an opportunity to demonstrate knowledge that supports your ability to practice at the level of a competent beginning midwife.

Choose one of the following scenarios:

Scenario 1

Marie presents unaccompanied to the Birth Suite complaining of mild intermittent abdominal pain at 36 weeks gestation. She appears moderately distressed.

Antenatal history: Marie has had one ultrasound scan at 18 weeks and a subsequent booking-in appointment at your facility at 20 weeks gestation, but no further antenatal care. She has no documented medical conditions and is a G4 P3 with previous uncomplicated pregnancies and births.

The Birth Suite is busy. You are a recently qualified Midwife and have been asked to make an initial assessment of the woman. The midwifery team leader tells you that the obstetric medical officer has been informed of the admission and will come to review the woman when they have finished a procedure in another of the Birth Suite rooms.

Scenario 2

You are a recently qualified midwife who has just started an early shift on the postnatal ward. Among the women assigned to your care is a Jenna, a 19 year old first time mother whose pregnancy had been under a GP shared care model. Jenna had a vacuum assisted birth at 9 pm the previous evening. This had followed an induction of labour for post-dates pregnancy which was commenced one day prior. The induction required a syntocinon infusion and Jenna also had an epidural. She has a 2° perineal tear which was sutured. Estimated blood loss was normal. The baby weighed 3.600 Kgs. He had skin to skin contact with Jenna immediately following birth and attached on and off the breast for some brief periods during this time. Since then, the baby has been sleepy and no good nutritive sucking has been documented on the feed chart. When you meet Jenna she is tearful and tells you that when her partner comes in later that morning, she is going to go home with the baby.

In your essay:

1). Discuss what considerations would guide your initial approach to Jenna, or Marie.

2). Discuss a) what clinical assessments you would make, b) what psychosocial assessments you would make.

3). Taking account of your level of experience as a new graduate midwife, discuss:

a). What initial plan of care you would formulate based on these assessments.

b). What consultation and referral process you would follow to communicate this plan to both the midwifery, and the wider multi-disciplinary team.

Within your discussion of the above you must clearly state the rationale for action, and link these to:

· Relevant clinical guidelines

· A woman-centred midwifery philosophy of care

· ACM National Midwifery Guidelines for Consultation & Referral

· NMBA Professional codes and guidelines for midwives

(additional guiding information on Moodle)

Minimal clinical practice experience of 224 hours is required by completion of this course. This clinical experience will allow you to consolidate knowledge and skills acquired throughout the course. You are required to meet the clinical requirements listed below and these requirements need to be documented within your Student Clinical Experience Record Book.

You are expected to work towards minimal clinical requirements which are:

1. Complete the four (4) ‘Continuity of Care (CoC) experience women recruited in term 3. By week 14 you must have completed 10 comprehensive reflective journals that include a minimum of:

- 4 antenatal visits

- labour/intrapartum care of at least 6 women

- 2 postnatal visits

2. Completed Competency Performance Assessment.

3.  Complete 224 hours of clinical practice experience plus continuity of care hours (10-20 in total per woman recruited).

Satisfactory completion of the clinical requirements outlined above in the Assessment Task description, and in the student clinical experiences record book is the criteria for successfully passing this subject.
Assessment outcome = Pass / Fail