INCIDENCE AND SOURCE OF ANXIETY OF MIDWIFERY STUDENTS IN CONDUCT THEIR FIRST VAGINAL EXAMINATION

The professional education can be a very stressful experience. Vaginal examinations are especially sensitive, both for the inexperienced midwifery student and for the pregnant woman being examined. This study aimed to determine anxiety of midwifery students when they conduct their first vaginal examination. In this cross-sectional study included 47 sophomore midwifery students of Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences. The students were asked to complete two questionnaires. Spielberger's State Anxiety Inventory was to measures anxiety, and another questionnaire consisted of demographic characteristics and anxiety and confidence feelings before and after conducting their first vaginal examination. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Fisher exact test, and paired t –test. Out of 47 distributed questionnaires, 43 were returned. The results showed that for the study population, the mean anxiety score on Spielberger anxiety test before and after was 79.86±17.3 and 38.91±11.05, respectively. Student's anxiety was significantly elevated immediately before and fell to below baseline levels after the examination (p<0.001). Feeling embarrassed to harm patients was the most dominant cause of student anxiety in learning vaginal exam (p<0.0001). The use of the mannequin-based simulation curriculum was effective in decreasing (p<0.045) student anxiety in learning vaginal exam. Midwifery educators should focus on student's anxiety when they conduct their first vaginal examination which increases sensitivity. Recognizing and discussing sources of anxiety before preclinical education is vital to decrease students’ anxiety level.