Graduate Diploma of Midwifery

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Compliance with the codes, guidelines and policies facilitates safe, competent interactions and relationships for students and/or the people they engage with. This ensures the physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual wellbeing of the individual is not placed at risk

Exemplars:

» Complying with academic and non-academic misconduct policies
» Demonstrating appropriate behaviour with confidential information in classroom and clinical settings
» Demonstrate appropriate behaviour when working with women from diverse backgrounds

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Behavioural stability is required to work individually and in teams in changing and unpredictable environments. Midwifery students will be exposed to a woman's private and emotionally charged pregnancy, labour and birth and post birth period which may include complex and emergency situations. Midwifery students will be required to have behavioural stability to manage these events objectively and professionally

Exemplars:

» Being receptive and responding appropriately to constructive feedback
» Coping effectively with own emotions and behaviour when working with women and their families during their maternity experience

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Knowledge, understanding, and compliance with legislative and regulatory requirements are necessary pre-requisites to practice placements in order to reduce the risk of harm to self and others
» Compliance with these professional regulations and the Australian Law ensures that students are both responsible and accountable for their practice

Exemplars:

» Complying with relevant child protection and safety legislation
» Complying with relevant drugs and poisons legislation

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Communication may be restricted to verbal because of physical limitations of the individual (e.g. injury, disease or congenital conditions)
» Speed and interactivity of communication may be critical for individual safety or treatment
» Timely, accurate and effective delivery of instructions is critical to individual safety, treatment and management

Exemplars:

» Participating in tutorial, simulation and clinical discussions
» Responding appropriately to a care request in the practice environment

Justification of inherent requirement:

» The ability to observe and understand non-verbal cues assists with building rapport with people and gaining their trust and respect in academic and professional relationships
» Displaying consistent and appropriate facial expressions, eye contact, being mindful of space, time boundaries and body movements and gestures promotes trust in academic and professional relationships
» Being sensitive to individual differences displays respect and empathy to others and develops trusting relationships
» The ability to observe and understand non -verbal cues is essential for safe and effective observation of a woman's and/or newborn's symptoms and reactions to facilitate the assessment and treatment of women and/or their newborn

Exemplars:

» Recognising and responding appropriately in classroom situations
» Recognising and responding appropriately to cues in the practice environment

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Construction of written text based assessment tasks to reflect the required academic standards are necessary to convey knowledge and understanding of relevant subject matter for professional practice
» Accurate written communication, including record-keeping and women's and newborns' notes, is vital to provide consistent and safe midwifery care

Exemplars:

» Constructing an essay to academic standards
» Documenting midwifery notes in a woman's maternity record in a timely manner that meets professional standards

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Safe and effective delivery of midwifery care is based on comprehensive knowledge that must be sourced, understood and applied appropriately

Exemplars:

» Ability to conceptualise and use appropriate knowledge in response to academic assessment items
» Applying knowledge of policy and procedures in the practice setting

Justification of inherent requirement:

» The ability to acquire information and to accurately convey messages is fundamental to ensure safe and effective assessment, treatment and delivery of care
» The ability to read, decode, interpret and comprehend multiple sources of information is fundamental for safe and effective delivery of midwifery care

Exemplars:

» Demonstrating the ability to convey a spoken message accurately
» Paraphrasing, summarising and referencing in accordance with appropriate academic conventions in written assignments
» Producing accurate, concise and clear midwifery documentation which meets legal requirements

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Competent application of numeracy skills is essential in midwifery to facilitate the safe and effective delivery of midwifery care

Exemplars:

» Performing accurate drug calculations
» Demonstrating accurate recording on a fluid balance chart

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Sufficient visual acuity is necessary to demonstrate the required range of skills, tasks and assessments to maintain consistent, accurate and safe care to self and others
» Visual observations, examination and assessment are fundamental to safe and effective midwifery practice

Exemplars:

» Accurately drawing up medication to administer
» Observing and detecting subtle changes in a newborn's colour

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Sufficient auditory ability is necessary to monitor, assess and manage a woman and newborn's health needs consistently and accurately
» Auditory assessments and observations are fundamental to safe and effective midwifery practice

Exemplars:

» Accurately undertaking a blood pressure measurement by auscultation
» Detecting the non verbal sounds made by a woman in labour which may indicate birthing was in progress

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Sufficient tactile ability is necessary to monitor, assess and detect a woman's physical and pregnancy related characteristics and act on any deviation detected to provide thorough midwifery care
» Tactile assessments and observations are fundamental to safe and effective midwifery practice

Exemplars:

» Detecting any changes in circulation observations e.g. temperature and pulse palpation
» Conducting an abdominal palpation during labour and detecting deviations from normal (e.g. breech presentation)

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Sufficient gross motor skills are necessary to perform, coordinate and prioritise care. Tasks that involve gross motor skills include lifting, carrying, pushing, pulling, standing, twisting and bending. Students must be able to demonstrate and perform these tasks consistently and safely to reduce the risk of harm to self and others

Exemplars:

» Maintaining balance while safely mobilising and transferring women, or newborns or resources
» Able to safely retrieve and utilise stock and equipment

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Sufficient fine motor skills are necessary to perform, coordinate and prioritise care. Tasks that involve fine motor skills include being able to grasp, press, push, turn, squeeze and manipulate various objects and individuals. Midwifery students must be able to demonstrate and perform these tasks consistently and safely to reduce the risk of harm to self and others

Exemplars:

» Performing the insertion of a urinary catheter
» Able to prime, accurately insert and set prescribed rate on an infusion device

Justification of inherent requirement:

» Sufficient physical and mental endurance is an essential requirement needed to perform multiple tasks in an assigned period to provide safe and effective care

Exemplars:

» Participating in tutorials, lectures, skills throughout the day
» Providing consistent care over a negotiated period of time