Effectiveness of structured education and training in perineal wound assessment and repair for midwives and midwifery students: A review of the literature

INTRODUCTION: Perineal trauma is a commonly observed complication of childbirth, affecting more than 75% of women who have a vaginal birth. Perineal trauma is associated with significant short- and long-term comorbidities that negatively impact women’s quality of life. Severe perineal trauma (SPT) rates in Australia have almost doubled in the last decade. Reasons for increased rates are not completely understood; some researchers suggest improvements in diagnosis and reporting, while others have a view that it may be due to a lack of structured and standardized education in perineal wound assessment and repair for clinicians. METHODS: The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) scoping review methodology was adopted as a systemic process to identify studies that have investigated the effectiveness of perineal wound assessment and repair education and training for midwives and midwifery students. RESULTS: Five studies met the inclusion criteria for this review, to have evaluated a type of education or training, on childbirth-related perineal wound assessment and repair that included midwives and midwifery students. A total of 1279 midwives and midwifery students volunteered to participate in all five studies. The length of the education or training implemented varied between each study from a 1-day workshop to 100 hours of education. All five studies measured the effectiveness of each program through changes in participants’ confidence, knowledge and skills in perineal assessment and repair before and after an intervention using various self-assessment questionnaires. CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of a structured educational workshop on perineal wound assessment and repair improves the confidence, skills and knowledge of midwives and students.