Psychosocial supports for staff in maternity hospitals and units following adverse events: a mapping study in the Republic of Ireland

Maternity staff commonly experience adverse events within their roles. Such events can have a profound impact, with a range of psychological impacts reported. Many maternity staff, however, report receiving inadequate support. The aim of this study is to establish the extent and nature of the provision of psychosocial supports for staff following adverse events in maternity hospitals and units in the Republic of Ireland. We administered a purposefully designed survey electronically to identified personnel in each of the 19 maternity hospitals and units from December 2023 to February 2024. The survey comprised primarily open-ended questions. Regarding staff supports following adverse events, respondents were asked whether they provided any of 13 pre-listed supports and they could add up to three additional supports. For each support provided, they were asked to detail its format, eligibility and access criteria, costs, evaluation, perceived uptake and impact, and any adaptations made over time. We analysed data descriptively, coding open-ended responses into explicit categories generated from the data and reporting frequencies, as per responses to closed questions. We received completed responses on the staff survey from 18 of 19 maternity hospitals and units. All but one site (n = 17) reported the provision of at least one form of psychosocial support following adverse events, with numbers ranging from 2 to 10 (mode = 6). The most frequently reported supports offered were Employee Assistance Programme (n = 16, 89%); Occupational Health (n = 15, 83%); Clinical Supervision (n = 10, 56%); After Action Review (n = 9, 50%). Varied information was provided about each of the supports within and across sites. While staff listed supports that were available in their hospital, they were unable to provide much detail regarding these, particularly regarding their evaluation, uptake and impact. There was also confusion between the different types of supports, especially relating to various forms of debriefing. This study maps the provision of psychological supports for staff in maternity hospitals and units in the Republic of Ireland following adverse events. Further research is needed to better understand what the optimal staff supports are, and what factors influence their implementation, to enhance uptake and impacts.