EC Gynaecology

In Scandinavia, collaboration between midwives and obstetricians in teaching hospitals has a long tradition. Midwives have always been a most important part of taking care of normal deliveries, but they even have an important role in instrumental deliveries. In this study, eighteen midwives from Gävle hospital were recruited, and they questionnaire for this study. They were asked to describe their experience in perineal support technique in different situations during delivery. The most used perineal support technique was either the Finnish grip or so-called C-grip but even Ritgen’s grip was still in use. The clinic in Gävle has a routine of having two midwives at the end of the second phase of delivery. Twelve midwives knew their personal statics of serious perineal tears whereas six did not. The most used position at the end of delivery was when mother lies on her side followed by half sitting position. When asked about the use of episiotomy, thirteen midwives reported that they used it and five did not. When the delivery ends with instrumental delivery, the doctor cuts the episiotomy in most cases, and the communication to the woman was given by doctor, but also midwife. Seven of the participants judged the cooperation during vacuum delivery as optimal, but twelve wrote that the collaboration could be better. Every clinic will always introduce new personnel who in many cases were learned otherwise. This is a major challenge in future, to take care of new colleagues, and to remind the basic staff of the techniques and lessons learned.

Keywords: Midwives’ Experiences; Perineal Support; Anal Sphincter Injury; Educational Program

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