---

Introduction: Hepatitis is a serious danger to heath of delivery room s personnels since direct exposure to the blood occurs in 25 percents of viginal labours.

Materials and Methods:This descriptive study carried out in order to evaluate knowledge about hepatitis B among midwives and midwifery’s students in delivery rooms in hospitals related to Medical Sciences universities in Tehran. The study group consisted of 120 persons (60 midwives and 60 midwifery’s students) and hospitals were selected through cluster sampling and samples selected randomly. Data collected by a questionnaire from June to September 2002. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and chi-square test.

Results: Results showed that knowledge were moderate in majority of midwives and midwifery s students. There was no significant difference between knowledge about hepatitis B in three universities.

Conclusion: This research showed that knowledge of midwives and midwifery s students about hepatitis B wasn t adequate hence training courses is recommended in order to increase knowledge of midwives and more attention must be paid to education of midwifery’s students about blood born diseases, especially hepatitis B.

---

Introduction: According to WHO, prolonged labour is one of the most important causes of maternal and newborn mortality. This study was carried out to assess the impact of education of partogramm on quality of midwifery’s care.

Materials and Methods: This survey was a quasi experimental study with one group pretest-posttest design which was carried out in some of governmental hospitals in Tehran in 2002. Subjects were 53 midwives who were working in different hospitals. The data was collected with an special questionnaire, WHO’s partogramm, and a check list to assess quality of midwifery care in labour. Result were analyzed with SPSS software.

Results: The findings showed that after education of partogramm a statistically significant improvement occurred in recording of twelve of fifteen variables including fetal heart rate, condition of amniotic fluid, vaginal bleeding, vital signs of mother, urine examination, drugs and fluid use, correct plotting of cervical dilatation, correct movement of dilatation graph to alert line, number of vaginal exams, recording time of rupture of membranes and time of amniotomy (p<0.0001).

Conclusion: The findings of this study indicate education of partogramm has a positive effect an quality of midwifery’s care and emphasis important of its education to midwifery’s students

---

Introduction: Midwifery practice is involved with clinical judgments which have direct effect on mother&aposs and embryo&aposs health. A midwife should be able to make vital decisions based on her knowledge and skills in emergency situations. A midwife can reach correct decisions by using critical thinking.

Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional, descriptive-comparative study we compared critical thinking of the first and last trimester baccalaureate and post graduate midwifery students of Medical Sciences Universities of Tehran. A total of 259 qualified students of 2002-2003 educational year were selected by census method. After description the goals and methods of study, we applied California critical thinking skills test (form B) in order to measure level of student&aposs critical thinking. This test is a valid tool for measuring critical thinking and skills, including analysis, inference, deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning and evaluation. Scores were analyzed by statistical tests (ANOVA, t test and Pearson correlation coefficient).

Results: No significant difference between total critical thinking scores of first and last trimester students was found but the scores of critical thinking of the last trimester students showed a significant decrease in Tehran University (p=0.009) and a significant increase in Iran University (p=0.007). No significant difference was found in skills of critical thinking among students. In last trimester students, scores of inductive reasoning showed a significant decrease in Tehran University (p=0.001) and a significant increase in Iran University. There was a significant decrease in evaluation ability scores in Tehran and Azad (open) Universities (p=0.002) a significant increase in these scores was found at Iran University (p=0.008).

Conclusion: According to the results of this study, despite importance of critical thinking, enough attention is not being paid to it during the educational course. The current midwifery education strategies are unable to increase level of critical thinking in students. It is essential to utilize new teaching strategies and active learning methods.

---

Pregnancy and delivery are special events in women’s and their family’s life. Although pregnancy is a natural phenomenon and not a disease, sometimes it can be associated with several dangers to the mother and her fetus. Maternal death is a global finding and its five most important causes are bleeding, infection, hypertension, prolonged labor and abortion in unsanitary condition. Early diagnosis of abnormal labor progression and prevention of prolonged labor can reduce the risk of postpartum bleeding and infection. The chart of labor called “Partograph” has been introduced and applied since 1970 to help diagnosis of the abnormal labor and cephalopelvic disproportion. Partograph is an early alerting system which can prevent probable difficulties in different stages of labor through recording of all of the observations and examinations on one chart, so that mother can be referred as soon as possible to higher levels of health services.

---

Introduction: Evaluation is a systematic process for collecting, analyzing and interpretation of the obtained information for the purpose of investigating how much the objectives in mind can be achieved. Education in an academic educational system means bringing about proper and increasing changes that affect the outcome of this system, that is affecting the students, and the aim of such evaluation was promotion of the quality of an education process.

Materials and Methods: In this study faculty of nursing and midwifery, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, benefiting from opinion poll of university lectures, student and graduates have evaluated their system of educational in the year 2004 and their aim was to remodel and adjust educational system with the society’s needs and promotion of the quality of such education’s. The employed method was cross sectional and descriptive and analytical on the basis of 10 procedural steps and with in 8 sections dealing with evaluated factors. Such as faculty board members, management and organizational capability, students, manpower and logistic affairs, educational environments research work centers, health and therapeutic sections, educational equipment, research equipment, laboratory and diagnosis centers, educational courses and programs, teaching and learning process as well as satisfaction expressed by students.

Results: the results of the research showed that general average of 8 investigating sections, based on SWOTs model were respectively 80.4% (nursing department), 81.5% (Midwifery department) and 82.1% (Ph.D nursing) that may well be interpreted as a desirable research work.                        

Conclusion: Educational evaluation is the best indicator showing how much we should go to achieve certain aims, analyzes quality of the activity if such a system and by which we achieve logical and routine results.

---

Background & Aim: Regarding to increasing of life expectancy, Women spend a greater proportion of their life in menopause that is associated with complications and makes disability for them. One of the safe treatments for these complications is herbal therapy.

Methods & Materials: This research is a semiexperimental study. Randomized cluster sampling method was used to select 50 menopaused women ranging from 45 to 55 years old. Experimental group used vitagnus (40 drops daily) for three months. The data was collected by interviewing and a structured questionnaire and daily diary. The data was analyzed by descriptive (percent, mean, standard deviation) and inferencing (2, t-test, Mcnimar, repeated ANOVA) statistical methods by SPSS software.

Results: The results showed a significant reduction in early menopausal complications after intervention (p<0.05). The most major improvement in menopaused women was realated to hotflash (52.2%) and night sweat (51.3%). The other complications showed moderate improvement. Conclusion: Vitagnus is effective in improving of early menopausal complications and therefore doctors and midwives can prescribe vitex instead of HRT in menopausal women.

---

Background & Aim: Blended E-Learning is an educational method which has been used recently in higher education worldwide. So, it seems that it is crucial for the Iranian academic members to accept it as a new educational method. This study was conducted to investigate attitudes of the faculty of Nursing and Midwifery School at Tehran University of Medical Sciences toward blended E-learning.

Methods & Materials: In this cross-sectional study, all faculty members of Tehran University of Medical Science (n=60) were recruited to the study. Data were gathered using validated and reliable self-designed questionnaires. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS software.

Results: The response rate was 93.33% (n=56). Most of the respondents (85.7%) were female. The mean age was 44.88 (SD=5.6). The years of teaching ranged from 5-30 years (mean=16.75). The majority of the respondents (66%) had positive attitude toward blended e-learning thirty four per cent had completely positive attitude and none of them had negative attitudes. About 41% reported that they were eager to provide their course syllabuses according to this approach and 87.5% said that they were willing to attend the blended e-learning education workshops. There were no significant relationships between demographic variables and the attitudes. There was a significant relationship between willing to attend the workshops and positive attitude toward blended e-learning (P=0.012).

Conclusion: According to the positive attitude of the respondents toward blended e-learning, it is recommended that further studies take place in order to design and implement the approach in formal education in the school of Nursing and Midwifery of Tehran University of Medical Science.

 

---

  Background & Aim: Depression is common among nursing and midwifery students. Problem-solving is a short-term intervention that can be used to treat psychological problems. This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of problem-solving skills training on depression scores among nursing and midwifery students .

  Methods & Materials: This was a clinical trial. Nursing and Midwifery st udents (n=900) studying at Tabriz and Urmia universities were recruited in the study during 2 010-2011. The Beck Depression Scale was administered in both schools. Ninety two students who achieved a score above 10 in the Beck Depression Scale were selected. One school was randomly allocated to the intervention group and the other one was allocated to the control group. Students in the intervention group received six sessions of problem-solving skills training within three weeks. T he questionnaire was completed by the participants in both schools after the intervention. Data were analyzed using the independent t-test . 

  Results: After the intervention, the Beck Depression Inventory score in the intervention group decreased from 18.60 to 13.41 (P<0.01). There were no differences in the control group before and after the intervention (P<0.01) .

  Conclusion: The problem-solving skills training program reduced depression scores. Providing information and using the problem-solving skills training are recommended .

  

 

---

  Background & Aim: Midwives are responsible for providing health services to mothers and infants in crises. The aim of this study was to identify educational needs of midwifery students regarding mother and infant mortality prevention in crisis situations .

  Methods & Materials: In this cross-sectional study, all 235 final-year BSc. and MSc. midwifery students were selected from four medical universities located in Tehran. Informed consent forms were completed and signed by the students. The students completed a researcher-made two-section questionnaire including demographic items and educational needs items regarding mother and child preventive services in crises. Data were analyzed in the SPSS . 

  Results: Mean score of the m aternal and neonatal prevention service dimensions were 70±21.5 ( out of 105 ) and 46.7 ± 9 (out of a 65), respectively. Most of the students (86.8% ) declared that their academic education did not prepare them for their roles in crises. Only 10.6% of the students had some courses on crisis and 11.5% of them had the experience of dealing with crisis. The students in the BSc. degree had more educational needs in both dimensions compared to the students in the MSc. degree (P<0.046). There were significant relationships between the age of students (P<0.001), their clinical experience (P<0.001), previous educational courses (P<0.001) and experience in crisis (P<0.05) with the educational needs. There was no significant relationship between the educational needs and the students’ universities ( P>0.05 ) .

  Conclusion: Educational curriculums should be revised regarding actions to be done on prevention of mother and infant mortality in crises .

  

---

Background & Aim: Clinical competence is the ability to perform professional tasks and coordinate cognitive, communication and psycho-motion skills in patient care, and empathy is one of the factors influencing clinical competence. Given the role of clinical competence in the quality of midwifery care, this study aimed to determine the effect of empathy skill training on clinical competence in midwifery students.
Methods & Materials: This randomized clinical trial study was conducted on 73 midwifery students and 438 pregnant women in 2015. A clinical competence questionnaire was used to assess the clinical competence of the students, which was completed in two ways by self-assessment and researcher assessment (after reviewing the student's performance for 3 times). Data were analyzed by chi-square test, independent t-test and paired t-test using the SPSS software version 16.
Results: There was no significant difference between the two groups in the mean score of clinical competence in the ways of self-assessment and assessment by the researcher before the intervention (P>0.05). Results from the post-intervention showed that there was significant difference between the two groups. However, the clinical competence score by the researcher assessment in the intervention group was significantly higher than in the control group (P<0.05). Also, the difference in the mean scores of the self-assessment of clinical competence before and after the intervention between the two groups was not significant (P>0.05), but the difference in the mean scores of the researcher assessment of clinical competence before and after the intervention between the two groups was significant (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Empathy skill training is an effective way to increase the clinical competence of students.
Clinical trial registry: IRCT 2016051127855N1
 

---

Background & Aim: The interdisciplinary nature of the profession of counseling in midwifery underscores the need for the establishment of an ethical framework to guide the provision of counseling services in various areas of midwifery and women's health. Consequently, the present study has been conducted with the objective of formulating code of ethics in midwifery counseling.
Methods & Materials: The present study is a developmental study using the Delphi method, which was conducted in three stages in 2020. The first stage involved qualitative content analysis to review the texts, and the development of an initial draft of ethical codes. In the second stage, expert opinions were sought from professionals specializing in medical and midwifery ethics to evaluate and make revisions to the initial draft. The third stage involved validation of the draft codes and their finalization.
Results: According to the results of the qualitative content analysis, a total of 182 codes were obtained from the texts and classified into eight categories. However, through the Delphi rounds, the number of categories was subsequently reduced to six, resulting in a decrease in the number of codes to 121. The identified categories included; "Professional competence", "Professional communication", "Management of client data", "Ethical considerations in tele-counseling", "Ethical considerations in midwifery counseling education”, and "Ethical considerations in research". These categories were established with a consensus level of 92.4%.
Conclusion: In this research, a set of ethical codes was obtained from the experts’ opinions in relevant disciplines from various universities across the country, with appropriate validity and consensus levels. These codes can be used in providing counseling services in midwifery, promoting safety and adhering to ethical principles and values.