An ethnographic exploration of the lifeworld and clinical practices of Zambian Midwives: childbirth, postpartum and newborn care

• Cultural and traditional values are united with childbirth and newborn care. • Midwives mediate biomedical methods, cultural wisdom and local childbirth knowledge. • Childbirth is navigated through shared strength, status and resilience. • Postpartum care reflects power dynamics, cultural norms and systemic limits. Enhancing the quality and safety of midwifery practices, clinical childbirth procedures and newborn care in Zambia is fundamental to promoting health and sustaining life. The midwife community, the environment and societal values and beliefs influence these approaches, principles and goals. To discover new knowledge and analyze clinical healthcare practices employed by midwives in Zambia. A qualitative, inductive and descriptive approach with an interpretative ethnographic design was utilized. Data were collected through fieldwork observations of midwifery care episodes, supplemented by written field notes. Five Zambian midwives participated in open, in-depth discussions resembling interviews. The data analysis was conducted through thematic analysis, resulting in the identification of four main themes: (i) Initial stages of childbirth; (ii) Maternal and fetal monitoring during the active phase of labor; (iii) Circumstances within the maternity ward during the childbirth effort phase and delivery; (iv) Postpartum care and care of the newborn and breastfeeding practices. This study has expanded the ethnographic horizon, discovering and highlighting cultural dimensions, possibilities and challenges associated with the Zambian midwifery profession and caring.