Early career midwives’ experiences of development opportunities and their relation to retention and job satisfaction: an interpretative phenomenological analysis study

Midwives are highly motivated by the prospect of accessing development opportunities for their personal and professional growth but also to improve the service they can provide birthing families. Meeting the 'development needs' of midwives could be seen not only as a way to advance the ability and capability of the workforce, but also improve job satisfaction, mitigate staff attrition and aid retention of skilled practitioners in the challenging context of United Kingdom maternity services. Further research on the experience, barriers, benefits and implementation of midwifery professional development should be considered.