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Women‐Centred but not Women‐Friendly: Understanding Student Attrition in the O ntario M idwifery E ducation P rogramme
Author(s) -
Neiterman Elena,
Lobb Derek K.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
gender, work and organization
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.159
H-Index - 73
eISSN - 1468-0432
pISSN - 0968-6673
DOI - 10.1111/gwao.12033
Subject(s) - attrition , dilemma , work (physics) , face (sociological concept) , psychology , balance (ability) , nursing , medical education , medicine , sociology , engineering , mechanical engineering , social science , philosophy , dentistry , epistemology , neuroscience
In analysing the reasons for high attrition among midwifery students enrolled in the O ntario M idwifery E ducation Programme, we examined how the challenges of maintaining work‐life balance among practising midwives impacts students' decisions to stay or withdraw from the programme. The content analysis of the written responses from a self‐administered online delivered survey revealed that many students drawn to the profession become disillusioned during their studies. Observing the difficulties that practising midwives face in trying to combine care for their clients with care for their families, students perceive midwifery as a profession that is women‐friendly only in relation to clients and not in relation to the practising midwives themselves. We suggest that the caring dilemma of midwifery impacts the neophytes to the profession. We contend that a change in structural organization of work would likely improve retention among student midwives.