On-call 24/7: midwives negotiating home and work boundaries

Abstract

This thesis explores the notion of how midwives negotiate their home and work boundaries. It is timely for midwives to be aware of how to actively manage their home and work spaces so that their clients, the midwives themselves and their families benefit. The thesis explores this in two strands. It first considers the multiple roles of the midwife and goes on to reveal a range of strategies used by midwives when they negotiate home and work boundaries. It reveals how our perception of boundaries between home and work may influence our choices of where and how we work over the period of our working lives. There is a tendency for midwives to assume that we all work in a similar way. The semi-structured interviews used as the research method in this study have revealed that there is great diversity of midwives' work practices which reflects our different personalities. The opportunity to work in a way that suits individual work styles is possible in New Zealand but it is a concern that some midwives want to be all things for all women. This concept is dangerous for the profession. The results of this research show that midwives are vulnerable and susceptible to burn out if they blur work and home boundaries. It also reveals that midwives rely on each other for professional and general personal support. It is essential therefore, that midwives and, especially the professional representatives of midwifery, remain vigilant and mindful of the well being of midwives when considering alterations to the legislation involving the work conditions of midwives.