Dear All
Having moved from a relatively large regional
hospital with ?midwifery care to a large city referral hospital, I am
becoming more and more amazed at interventions that some midwives see as
normal. Women come to the postnatal ward following a forceps delivery of
their baby and our handover is given as a NVD. No mention of episi or
forceps until you read the notes. For some bizarre reason, I don't think
that there is anything normal about forceps!!
Further to this, the practice here is to strongly
recommend that babies receive a comp feed of formula via a bottle if they
haven't fed for 5 hours. Apparently, the reason being that babies need
to feed at least this often! At my other place of employment these
babies were monitored a bit more closely, never given a bottle, and sure
enough when these cherubs worked out what the breast was all about they tended
to feed quite often and well.
Also, at this new place of employment I have had
numerous women ask me to put their baby to their breast for them like the last
midwife did. I always let them know that they can't take the midwife
home with them and so they need to try themselves and that I will be back in 5
minutes to see how they are going. Low and behold 5 minutes later mum
has baby to the breast suckling beautifully. When I told an experienced
midwife how I go about this she said "don't they complain that you are not
helping them". Well not to my knowledge, but who knows.
Why do we need to further deplete our women's
confidence with offering bottles and putting babies to breasts for them.
Isn't their confidence shattered enough after their babes are delivered!!! in
clinical controlled environments.
Finally, why are midwives their own worst
enemy! I am astounded by the amount of midwives that go to private obs,
and recommend that their daughters do the same. How can we educate women
to use midwifery centred care when many midwives don't believe in it
themselves.
Love this list because it helps me feel a little
less lonely in my beliefs. I keep battling on and learning as much as I can
from women.
newly graduated Midwife
Sonia
