Understanding midwifery workforce retention: An Australian cross-sectional study

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Nursing and Midwifery Studies
• Organizational Psychology

Background:

• Workforce retention is a critical issue in international and Australian midwifery.
• Limited contemporary, midwifery-specific workforce data exists for Western Australia (WA).
• Understanding retention drivers is essential for strategic workforce planning.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore midwives' perspectives on factors influencing workforce retention.
• To investigate midwives' views on their working environment.

Main Methods:

• Anonymous cross-sectional survey of 193 midwives in WA's largest maternity service.
• Quantitative data analyzed using descriptive statistics and structural equation modeling.
• Qualitative data analyzed using content analysis.

Main Results:

• Positive perceptions of workplace culture were strongly associated with feeling acknowledged and improved midwifery retention.
• Top reasons for midwives intending to stay were pay, appropriate patient ratios, and increased professional profile.
• Midwives identified intraprofessional relationships, workforce valuation, and career satisfaction as key retention factors.

Conclusions:

• Midwives' retention is influenced by transformational leadership, professional recognition, and workplace empowerment.
• Findings offer novel insights into WA midwifery workforce retention indicators.
• Midwife-driven solutions are recommended to support sustainable midwifery workforce retention.