Incorporating emotional intelligence in nursing and midwifery education

Emotional intelligence (EI) is defined as the ability to monitor one's own and others' feelings and emotions, discriminate between the positive and negative effects of emotions and use this information to guide one's thinking and actions (Salovey & Mayer, 1990). Emotions permeate nursing and midwifery practice, understanding one's own emotions is the basis of understanding the emotions of others, a critical skill for healthcare professionals (Freshwater & Stickley, 2004). Historically, the emotional aspects of clinical practice were deemed far too perilous for the nursing and midwifery student which resulted in a task orientated approach to the delivery of care (Menzies, 1960).