Learning about life and death: Midwives leading perinatal and death education in primary schools

To describe teachers' perceptions and children's attitudes and behaviours in response to a perinatal and death education workshop conducted by midwives in primary school classrooms.

This descriptive qualitative study employed a phenomenological approach. The workshop addressed pregnancy, birth, death -including perinatal death-, and related care. It was grounded in the perinatal ecosystemic model and the reconstruction of bonding and meaning in mourning. A three-stage sampling strategy was used: convenience, snowball, and purposive. The sample included 30 teachers and 606 students from nine primary schools in a region of northern Spain. Data collection involved semi-structured, in-depth interviews with participating teachers and field notes documenting children's attitudes and behaviours.

Teachers highlighted: a) the naturalness with which the topics were addressed; b) the workshop's effectiveness in helping children understand and cope with the perinatal period and the death of loved ones; c) the resources used were very age-appropriate; and d) their own insufficient training to talk about death. The students remained attentive and participatory, even when the topic of death was addressed. They were also unaware of the role of the midwife during pregnancy.

Midwives could be trained to deliver this workshop, as their professional expertise offers a unique contribution to perinatal and death education. Integrating this content into the school curriculum may promote emotional resilience and health literacy from an early age.