Contagion: Scientific Periodical Journal of Public Health and Coastal Health
Vol 8, No 3 (2026): Contagion

Effect of a Blended Clinical Learning Model on Delivery Care Competency Among Professional Midwifery Students

Lolita Nugraeny (Professional Midwifery Education Program, Universitas Haji Sumatera Utara)
Siti Hajar (Professional Midwifery Education Program, Universitas Ahmad Dahlan Aceh)
Eliya Wardayani (Professional Midwifery Education Program, Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Kesehatan Flora)



Article Info

Publish Date
30 Sep 2026

Abstract

Delivery care competency is a fundamental ability that midwifery professional students must master to provide safe, effective, and high-quality maternal health services. Conventional clinical education alone does not consistently build this competency, creating a need for learning models that combine structured self-paced preparation with supervised hands-on practice. This study aimed to analyze the effectiveness of a blended clinical learning model, compared with conventional clinical learning, in improving delivery care competency scores among professional midwifery students. Novelty: Unlike previous studies that examined blended learning in general nursing or midwifery theory courses, this study evaluates a structured seven-stage blended clinical learning model specifically designed for intrapartum (delivery) care practicum, integrating a Learning Management System (LMS), video demonstration, laboratory simulation with formative OSCE, bedside teaching, and structured clinical reflection. A quasi-experimental design with a pretest-posttest control group approach was used. Sixty midwifery professional students undergoing clinical practice in maternity care were allocated by purposive sampling into an intervention group (n = 30) and a control group (n = 30). The intervention group received a four-week blended clinical learning program; the control group received conventional clinical learning. Delivery care competency was measured with an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) checklist and a clinical competency observation sheet (content validity by three experts). Data were analyzed with paired t-tests and independent t-tests after Shapiro-Wilk normality tests and Levene’s tests for homogeneity of variance confirmed the assumptions for parametric testing. Delivery care competency scores in the intervention group increased significantly from 68.45 ± 5.21 to 87.32 ± 4.11, compared with an increase from 69.11 ± 5.10 to 75.24 ± 5.42 in the control group. The between-group difference in post-intervention scores was statistically significant (p < 0.001; mean difference = 12.08, 95% CI 9.59–14.57; Cohen’s d = 2.51). Blended clinical learning produced a significantly greater improvement in delivery care competency—including labor assessment, clinical decision-making, delivery skills, therapeutic communication, documentation, and clinical reasoning—than conventional learning. These findings support blended clinical learning as a practical strategy for strengthening intrapartum clinical education in midwifery professional programs, provided it is implemented with adequately trained preceptors and structured reflection sessions. Keywords: Blended Clinical Learning, Delivery Care Competency, Midwifery Students; Clinical Reasoning, Maternity Care.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

contagion

Publisher

Subject

Health Professions Public Health

Description

Contagion: Scientific Periodical Journal of Public Health and Coastal Health, A Scientific Periodic Journal of Public Health published by the Public health Study Program of The Faculty of Public Health UINSU Medan. This Journal prioritiez the collaboration of lecturers and students with scope of the ...