Peer group supervision is an efficient method to assist midwives to solve complicated cases: A case-study in the Women’s Clinic, East-Tallinn Central Hospital, Estonia

INTRODUCTION: Midwives have a remarkable influence on various outcomes in healthcare, of which the activities related to the management during the childbirth are emphasised the most. Midwives like all healthcare workers encounter many different stressors in clinical practice, including time pressure, excessive workload, different roles, and emotional issues. The profession of the midwife requires much knowledge, competence, good attitude and self-confidence in order to cope with many different complicated situations and dilemmas. This study has been conducted under the project: ‘Increasing midwives’ ethical competence: a European educational and practice development project (INEC)’. METHODS: This is a qualitative case study. The current case study involved 7 midwives of the Women’s Clinic, East-Tallinn Central Hospital, Estonia; the midwives expressed their willingness and agreed to take part in the activities of the peer group supervisors. The aim of the case study was to find how peer group supervision as a method helps midwives to solve complicated cases and dilemmas, helping them to maintain self-confidence and therefore to manage stress at work more effectively. RESULTS: All the participating midwives shared the opinion that peer group supervision helps midwives to cope with complicated situations and dilemmas more effectively, it empowers professional skills and self-confidence, and so contributes to more effective stress management at work. Also, the midwives expressed hope that this topic would be useful for the professional midwives and to other employees working in the field of healthcare, that encounter complicated cases in their daily work, and so will form an active team of peer group supervision. CONCLUSIONS: Peer group supervision is an efficient method that helps midwives solve complicated cases in the Women’s Clinic, East-Tallinn Central Hospital, Estonia.