The costs of 'being with the woman': secondary traumatic stress in midwifery

It is widely acknowledged that caring can cause emotional suffering in health-care professionals. The concepts of compassion fatigue, post-traumatic stress disorder and secondary traumatic stress are used to describe the potential consequences of caring for people who are or have experienced trauma. Empathy between the professional and patient or client is a key feature in the development of secondary traumatic stress. The aim of this paper is to contribute to the conceptual development of theory about dynamics in the midwifea??woman relationship in the context of traumatic birth events, and to stimulate debate and research into the potential for traumatic stress in midwives who provide care in and through relationships with women.