Have you ever been in a situation where you know that you cannot speak freely, even when you have the utmost desire and urge to do so? Do you realize just how hard it is to bite your tongue?
That would be me, when an entire family started pretty much bashing all midwives.
Well, you see, they ALL delivered their babies with DOCTORS! That's the way it has always been and always will be. DOCTORS DAMMIT, not hippy midwives!
Ok, so they didn't say "hippy", but the undertones, body language and underlying ignorance were clear.
"When is the DOCTOR coming to see her?" (Uh, the doctor doesn't come in unless she needs a c-section or an operative vaginal birth. The nurse-midwife attends her labor and birth.)
"She's never even SEEN a midwife for her prenatal care! Only DOCTORS!" (Well, that's odd, because there are several nurse-midwives in her practice. Also, all of the practices in the area have physicians and nurse-midwives.)
"Well, she doesn't want a midwife. She only wants a DOCTOR!" (Well, a certified nurse-midwife is an advanced practice nurse who cares for normal pregnant women. She has about 8 years of college and a Masters degree. Also, the midwives in your group are generally the professionals who are present at the majority of the births.)
".........(silence)............" (Just so you know, I'm in year 6 of 8 towards becoming a nurse-midwife. However, I will let the midwife know of your preference for a physician to attend your birth.)
..............bite tongue..................
.............exit stage left.................
.............silently scream inside..............
Was I too snarky at the end? After all the attacking they were doing to the profession of midwifery, and their obvious ignorance of what midwives are trained to do, I just had to get my own little barb in there. You insult midwives, you insult ME!
(Can you tell that I'm also not that big on the whole "customer service" attitude of upper management towards the lowly staff nurse?)
Showing posts with label historical midwifery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label historical midwifery. Show all posts
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Amy Romano, I *heart* you!
Here is a post on Amy Romano's blog, Science and Sensibility: Are Consumers at the bottom of the evidence pyramid?
To sum it up: research is being done to find evidence of care in what we (medical/nursing people) do to the consumer, and not what involves consumer (patient/family) participation. Studies are done on perfecting surgical techniques, medications given, things of that nature, but studies are rarely done about what women/families do to help themselves or each other during labor, birth, postpartum and neonatal care.
I feel incredibly frustrated, as the health care provider towards the very end of a woman's pregnancy. I cannot, as the labor and delivery nurse, do a whole lot to educate women about their choices and how to empower themselves during their pregnancy. Women come to me on the L&D unit when they are in labor, have complications, or are being induced for labor. Yes, I do a whole lot of teaching about the labor process, pain management, coping/alternatives to pain medication or epidurals, the induction process, medical conditions, medical treatment and interventions. But it's almost like shutting the barn door after the animals have escaped. I am at the tail end of a woman's pregnancy. She has had nine months for education and empowerment -- but has she received it? Is it adequate enough for her to make informed decisions about her body and her newborn baby?
I am very excited though, as a midwifery student, about the possibility of being able to enact change. I'm excited about how I can help reach women in new ways to help them with their self-care, education, and their spiritual and physical pathways to becoming mothers.
(Side note: if you are interested in midwifery and the medical profession -- where it has been, where it is now, where it is going -- go read Midwifery and Childbirth in America by Judith Pence-Rooks.)
To sum it up: research is being done to find evidence of care in what we (medical/nursing people) do to the consumer, and not what involves consumer (patient/family) participation. Studies are done on perfecting surgical techniques, medications given, things of that nature, but studies are rarely done about what women/families do to help themselves or each other during labor, birth, postpartum and neonatal care.
I feel incredibly frustrated, as the health care provider towards the very end of a woman's pregnancy. I cannot, as the labor and delivery nurse, do a whole lot to educate women about their choices and how to empower themselves during their pregnancy. Women come to me on the L&D unit when they are in labor, have complications, or are being induced for labor. Yes, I do a whole lot of teaching about the labor process, pain management, coping/alternatives to pain medication or epidurals, the induction process, medical conditions, medical treatment and interventions. But it's almost like shutting the barn door after the animals have escaped. I am at the tail end of a woman's pregnancy. She has had nine months for education and empowerment -- but has she received it? Is it adequate enough for her to make informed decisions about her body and her newborn baby?
I am very excited though, as a midwifery student, about the possibility of being able to enact change. I'm excited about how I can help reach women in new ways to help them with their self-care, education, and their spiritual and physical pathways to becoming mothers.
(Side note: if you are interested in midwifery and the medical profession -- where it has been, where it is now, where it is going -- go read Midwifery and Childbirth in America by Judith Pence-Rooks.)
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