Student Midwives Development of Tacit Knowledge in the Performance of a Pregnancy Abdominal Examination: A mixed methods study

Pregnancy abdominal examination is a hallmark of midwifery practice that requires considerable dexterity to master. The realities of becoming competent in this routine midwifery practice are elusive in the midwifery literature. This mixed methods study explored the student midwife experience of developing skills in the performance of a pregnancy abdominal examination. Data collection for the Phase One section of the study involved conducting semi-structured interviews with six experienced registered midwives, exploring their reality of supervising student midwives performing a pregnancy abdominal examination. Using thematic analysis, the findings drove the design of a self-completion survey for Phase Two of the study. In total, 23 student midwives described their knowledge growth in the performance of a pregnancy abdominal examination. The study identified an important connection between tacit knowledge development and competency growth in the performance of this procedure. A conceptual model was devised from the quantitative and qualitative findings, where it was proposed that tacit knowledge is embedded in experience, multi-sensory integration, palpatory literacy and the ‘know-how’ and support of midwife preceptors. The study raises important issues for practice by demonstrating the multi-faceted learning strategies that are fundamental for student midwives’ cognitive skill development of a mandated competency. Application of any research recommendations requires a collective approach with stakeholders, to integrate effective teaching and learning strategies to support student knowledge growth. The study acknowledges the need for further empirical research, to understand knowledge growth over the progression of midwifery courses as well as the mechanisms which support practical skill learning and multi-sensory perception.Submitted in the fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Education, University of the Sunshine Coast, 2017