Frequency and Reasons of Midwives Malpractices in Cases Referred to General Office of Legal Medicine of Isfahan, Iran during 2005-2009

Midwives continually are known as the first custodians of mothers and fetus care. This item causes midwifes problems in their work and irreparable faults. This study investigated the frequency and reasons of midwifes malpractices in cases referred to general office of legal medicine of Isfahan، Iran during 2005-2009. This descriptive-cross sectional study was conducted on all cases referred to general office of legal medicine of Isfahan، Iran during 2005-2009 with claims from midwifery staffs occupied in hospitals، clinics and other healthcare centers. Data were gathered by a checklist. Data collection methods were resource review and observation. Data were analyzed by SPSS software (version 11). 41 claims (5. 8%) of 708 claims were from midwifes. 18 midwives from 41 (43. 9%) were convicted. Negligence (38. 9%) and carelessness of governmental rules (44. 4%) were the main reasons of midwives malpractices. 13 midwives (31. 7%) allocated the most frequency of claims. They were in the age range of 35 to 65 years. 35 midwives (85. 4%) of 41 gave services in hospitals and 6 cases (12. 2%) in home-health. With attention to importance of midwifery، the practitioners of this occupation should be informed about medical laws and regulations، crimes and infractions، blood money law، abortion laws and other legal materials.