Midwives’ Professional Satisfaction and the Quality of Obstetric Care in Developing Country

Introduction: In Africa, poor working conditions affect the motivation of health care providers. The objective is to study midwives’ professional satisfaction on the technical quality of emergency obstetric care in Senegal. Material and Methods: This was a prospective study of 16 hospitals in Senegal. The job satisfaction of midwives was measured during a personal interview. The instrument used was validated in Senegal and Mali. Other data collected relate to professional and institutional characteristics. A treatment observation grid was used to measure the quality of obstetric care in labour wards. Mixed-model linear regression was used to estimate the effect of satisfaction on the quality of obstetric care. Results: A total of 65 midwives were interviewed and 325 patients observed. The average quality score was 8.7 ± 1.7. The satisfaction scores ranged from 42.2 ± 17.4 (salary) to 76.7 ± 12.1 (morale satisfaction). A positive and significant correlation was found between quality of care and management (cc = 0.56), remuneration (cc = 0.40), task (cc = 0.32), workload (cc = 0.24) and training (cc = 0.29). The linear mixed model shows that salary (β = 0.40), continuing education (β = 0.17) and management style (β = 0.42) improved the quality of care. Association between moral satisfaction and quality care was negative (β = −0.53). Conclusion: The satisfaction of health professionals is a major determinant of the quality of obstetric care. Its inclusion in the fight against mortality has become imperative in developing.