Women anticipate that the postnatal period will be dedicated to caring for their newborn child; therefore, perineal wound infection and its consequences can be debilitating and affect the joys of motherhood.To identify perineal wound infection early, midwives are required to enquire about symptoms of perineal wound infection at every postnatal visit (NICE, 2008); however, this is not always feasible owing to the midwifery workload and staffing issues (Force, 2000).