Psychological training and support in navigating the emotional impact of work: a qualitative study

Background/Aims High levels of stress, trauma and poor morale among midwives and obstetricians are concerning. A psychological training and support programme was implemented to help maternity staff navigate the emotional impact of their work. This study explored participants' experience of the programme. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine senior maternity staff who completed the programme, and the data were analysed thematically. Results The six themes were: safe space for sharing feelings and vulnerability, newfound sense of agency, the power of joining together, raised awareness of clients' emotional state, race: an uncomfortable yet necessary conversation, and barriers to delivery of the full programme. Conclusions The intervention can increase psychological safety and improve morale for maternity staff. More work needs to be done to overcome some of the barriers to attendance and find out if it could be helpful to maternity staff in other hospitals. Implications for practice Given the serious pressures on the maternity workforce, interventions that enable staff to process the emotional impact of their work are more important than ever. This type of training and support programme may be exactly what is needed to retain a maternity workforce that experiences wellbeing.