I think the various staff health and safety issues around possible working situations do/can get in the way in a hospital setting. These include lifting, even partial lifting or support, kneeling on the floor, bending etc.. Having been at several different hospitals in the course of finding a job I have been advised of many of these. At one hospital, i can't remember which, i was told I would have to attend a particular lift workshop before attending a woman in water as, in case she had to get out but needed assistance there was an assisted lift protocol. This sounds arduous and unnecessary to us home birthers, but I think we have to take ourselves out of the context of attending 10 to 40 births in a 12 month period (where I think back and leg strain etc. is minimised) and a midwife working full time in birth suite. I am aware that the hospital management is probably less interested in the midwives' well being than in possible workers compensation cases, still I do think there is danger of repetitive work place injury if we put ourselves in compromising positions frequently.
I agree too Ruth, in the practices i worked with in seattle and california, i lifted the babies out of the water into their mothers arms more often than the mother doing this. I don't think we need to make a rule (that the mother lift the baby out) that this must happen in a water birth. I have wondered if this was due to actually none (zero, nada) of the women I worked with being midwives (lawyers, teachers, artists, accountants) where as it appears to me, that many (note I did not say all or even most) homebirthers here are actually midwives too. marilyn ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ruth Cantrill" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Saturday, February 08, 2003 2:53 PM Subject: Re: [ozmidwifery] Birth through water > > > > > > A new midwife to our unit from England said our baths would not be suitable > > because of back care for the midwife! My response was that from what I've read > > the baby is birthed by the mum, hands off by the midwife, so why should there > > be a problem!! > > how many women are willing to touch their baby during the process of birth > and immediately at the moment of birthing??? > > i can see that with much pre education this may be possible. However if it > is to happen the way you idealistically suggest then perhaps one criteria > for in water birthing will need to be that women are fully educated > willing and cooperative in handling her baby at the moment of birth. > > we do have to be careful in the asumptions we make about how women may feel > and be able to respond at the various stages of birthing. > > Ruth > > > ------------------------------------- > Ruth Cantrill > Griffith University > NATHAN QLD 4111 > > Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > > -- > This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics. > Visit <http://www.acegraphics.com.au> to subscribe or unsubscribe. > -- This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics. Visit <http://www.acegraphics.com.au> to subscribe or unsubscribe.
