For
years and years, Pinnards and the human ear were the best tools. The
midwife trains her ear the more she listens. The easiest way to get a good
heart beat is to palpate the baby first, feel where the baby's back lies and
listen over the shoulder, if posterior listen over
the chest. Most children and dad's can hear the heart rate with
an ear especially when you teach them to gently palpate the baby's lie and
presentation.
kind
regards Robyn
-----Original Message-----HI all....
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Thursday, January 23, 2003 6:44 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] Pinnards v's dopplar
as a midwife student I find it interesting to see how different midwives work. I was surprised to see (well not really :-( ) when I was on my recent clinical placement that there were no pinards readily available...I hunted around til I found one in the FBU....and used it on the few occasions when I was granted the opportunity to feel and listen...Having worked with many HM MW over the years I find most have great skills in listening to the babe with a pinard in whatever positions the woman seemed to get herself into...and if the pinard was not suitable, then the stethoscope or the naked ear was used.
I have found personally that the art is in tuning the ear to the babes heart sounds.....it truly is a skill to master using the pinard and the stethoscope....both I am becoming more confident in using. I as yet cannot hear with the naked ear....but as with the pinard and the steth...once you do KNow what your hearing its unmistakable.....I find the old doppler a bit of a trick though...again its seems to be what one gets used too and having not used one alot I find its practise in 'knowing' how to tilt the transducer....seems to be the 'angle of the dangle'...in how reliable one is in using one. Again practice and experience !! I love using the pinard....and in labour if I cannot hear the FHR reliably I try the stethoscope....particularly if the woman is mobile and active, on all fours etc...it alot easier to just slip the steth in under her belly to listen than to disrupt her rhythm. The lower the babe gets into the pelvis too, the more difficult I find it to hear the heart b! ! eat...even with a doppler....but once that babe is really nice and rotated to the anterior it seems for me easier to hear it again....again all comes with experience I suppose:-))
Yours in reforming midwifery
Tina Pettigrew.
B Mid Student
ACU Melb.
