The 1999-2000 ACC task analysis of nurse-midwifery/midwifery practice: a consideration of the concept of professional issues

The American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) Certification Council periodically conducts a task analysis study as evidence supporting the content validity of the national certification examination in nurse-midwifery and midwifery. The purpose of this article is to report findings related to the examination of the relationship between professional issues and safe beginning-level midwifery as measured by the 1999–2000 Task Analysis of American Nurse Midwifery and Midwifery Practice. Study findings suggest that newly certified midwives place strong emphasis on the importance of tasks related to the ACNM “Hallmarks of Midwifery,” which characterize the art and science of the profession; these include tasks dealing with health promotion and cultural competency. The beginning midwives, however, gave consistently low ratings to tasks related to ACNM “Core Competencies” that mirror the professional responsibilities of midwives; these include tasks related to the history of midwifery, research, or health policy. The study has implications for nurse-midwifery/midwifery educators, experienced midwifery mentors, and other persons interested in reinforcing the relevance of these important professional issues to the new midwife.