BACKGROUND: Enhancing the quality of clinical education in midwifery is crucial for the growth and development of competent students. A mentorship program offers a pathway for midwifery students to improve clinical skills, enhance abilities, and acquire greater clinical competencies. This study aimed to determine the impact of implementing a mentorship program on the clinical competency of midwifery students. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This randomized controlled trial was conducted from December 2022 to October 2023 among final-year bachelor midwifery students at Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Twenty-eight midwifery students were randomly assigned to either the intervention group ( n = 14) or the control group ( n = 14). In the intervention group, clinical education for normal and abnormal deliveries during the field training was provided using a continuous group mentorship program, while the control group received traditional instruction. The effectiveness of the mentorship program was evaluated at four levels of Kirkpatrick’s model: reaction, learning, behavior, and results, using proper questionnaires and checklists. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 24. T -test and ANCOVA were used to analyze the data. RESULTS: The results of the study showed a significant difference in student satisfaction scores at level 1 (reaction), clinical competency in the knowledge dimension at level 2 (learning), clinical competency in the performance dimension at level 3 (behavior change), and institutional impacts of the mentorship program at level 4 of Kirkpatrick’s evaluation model ( P = 0.00). CONCLUSION: The findings of this study strongly support the implementation of mentorship programs with a focus on innovative teaching approaches as a critical strategy for improving the clinical skills of midwifery students.
Fathi et al. (Sun,) studied this question.