Complex interventions in midwifery care: Reflections on the design and evaluation of an algorithm for the diagnosis of labour

Citation

Dowding D, Cheyne H & Hundley V (2011) Complex interventions in midwifery care: Reflections on the design and evaluation of an algorithm for the diagnosis of labour. Midwifery, 27 (5), pp. 654-659. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2009.11.001

Abstract
Randomised controlled trials are the ‘gold standard’ for evaluating the effectiveness of interventions in health-care settings. However, in midwifery care, many interventions are ‘complex’, comprising a number of different elements which may have an effect on the impact of the intervention in health-care settings. In this paper we reflect on our experience of designing and evaluating a complex intervention (a decision tool to assist with the diagnosis of labour in midwifery care), examining some of the issues that our study raises for future research in complex interventions.

Keywords
Complex interventions; Cluster randomised controlled trial; Decision tool; Labor (Obstetrics); Childbirth; Midwifery

Journal
Midwifery: Volume 27, Issue 5