Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Thesis Format

Integrated Article

Degree

Master of Science

Program

Nursing

Supervisor

Dr. Mickey Kerr

2nd Supervisor

Dr. Yolanda Babenko-Mould

3rd Supervisor

Dr. Clementine Kanazayire

Affiliation

University of Rwanda

Abstract

In the first minute of life after birth, it is critical to effectively manage an infant’s respiratory status. Given the critical nature of newborn airway management, it is vital that health professionals have the knowledge and confidence to engage in airway management procedures. Consequently, there has been a call for nurses and midwives to be prepared to skillfully enact neonatal resuscitation interventions when required, especially in low-resource environments, to help reduce neonatal death. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of a mentorship program that involves an education component for neonatal resuscitation in the first minute after birth. The study examined changes to knowledge and self-efficacy of Rwandan nurses and midwives towards newborn airway care outcomes. A pre-/post-test, quasi-experimental study design was used to assess the changes in knowledge about and self-efficacy for neonatal resuscitation. Using a paired t-test, the results suggested that nurses’ and midwives’ knowledge and self-efficacy increased significantly, and participants’ knowledge correlated positively to self-efficacy. Therefore, a mentorship program that supports’ professional development through education appears to be an effective strategy to enhance nurses’ and midwives’ knowledge about and self-efficacy for neonatal resuscitation and could eventually lead to neonatal practice improvements.

Summary for Lay Audience

Background: In the first minute of life after birth, it is critical to effectively manage an infant’s ability to breathe. Given the critical nature of breathing to the survival of newborns, it is vital that health professionals have the knowledge and confidence to engage in procedures that can help restore the breathing of babies having difficulty at birth. Consequently, there has been a call for nurses and midwives to be prepared to skillfully intervene when babies have difficulty breathing at birth, especially in low-resource environments where newborn deaths are still relatively common. Purpose of the study: The study tested changes to the knowledge and confidence in their ability to improve newborn breathing before and after a six-month mentorship program. Method: A before and after study design was used to assess the knowledge and confidence related to improving babies breathing for nurses and midwives from three districts in Northern Rwanda. Among 169 nurses and midwives who registered to attend the mentorship, 141 were accessible for a pre-mentorship assessment. However, only 123 completed both the before and after assessments. Results: By comparing the average scores before and after the mentorship, the findings revealed that nurses and midwives’ knowledge and confidence in their ability increased significantly from 78.2% to 93.4% and from 7.17/10 to 9.34/10 respectively. Similarly, the strength of the relationship between participants knowledge and confidence in their ability increased significantly after the mentorship. Conclusion: A mentorship program that supports’ professional development through education appears to be an effective strategy to enhance Rwandan nurses’ and midwives’ knowledge about and the confidence in their ability to help newborns breathe better at birth. Implementing a national program based on the study could help lead to practice improvements and reduce infant deaths in Rwanda.

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