Category: Being busy as a midwife

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A midwifes role in the maternity theatre – support from managers

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Here it is my blog aimed at NHS managers and fundholders of maternity services – time to explain a few home truths. MORE support is required for midwives in the operating theatre from upper NHS management in order to facilitate and maintain SkinToSkin contact between mothers , fathers and babies .

A few reasons the midwife may have for leaving theatre include : –

  • To check the placenta
  • To take blood gases
  • To obtain documentation from a printer (which is not actually in the operating theatre)
  • To complete digital or written records
  • To register the birth

Let’s look at it another way – if an operating department practitioner said to a midwife “I just need to nip out for a few minutes can you step in for me for a few minutes and help the anaesthetist? ” how would a midwife feel ? How often does this happen ? Never !!

We must respect each another’s professional competencies and abilities and not take advantage of any given situation . The operating theatre is governed by health and safety due to the highly clinical nature of its environment . Midwives are selling themselves short by trying to manage their workload instead of questioning why they need more support .

We must deal with the root cause which is midwives leaving theatre to complete routine tasks (when they should be staying with women and babies)

The symptom is the fear of other staff in theatre of caring for the dyad , the woman’s fear at being unable to speak out that she’s scared of holding her baby during her operation or procedure .

The midwife has a professional responsibility for the mother and her newborn as set out in the NMC code of conduct and The NMC Standards for Competence for Registered Midwives

I’d also like to refer to these key parts of the NMC code which seem to address care of the dyad in theatre so well .

If you are a manager support your midwives by auditing the reasons why a midwife might leave a woman in theatre for any length of time and address that issue with the multidisciplinary operating theatre team – there will be solutions and the solutions will improve care , safety , women’s and families experience of care in the operating theatre and well as giving midwives immense job satisfaction, plus enabling team cohesiveness – what more could you ask for ?

I am challenging all line managers to go into the operating theatre and watch the midwife – how can you make it better for the midwife and therefore the dyad ?

Keep on keeping on

Thank you for reading my blog

Please leave your comments as I appreciate all feedback

Jenny ❤️

Being bullied, Being busy as a midwife, Birth, Change management, Courage, culture in nhs, data colllection, Digital, Discharge planning, Giving information, Hospital, Human kindness, Kindness, Labour , birth, Labour and birth, leadership, Midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery and birth, Motherhood, New parents, NHS, NHS Systems and processes, Obstetrics, organisational development, Student Midwives, Working from the heart

Does the NHS need to rethink the way health professionals are made to approach their work ?

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It’s been a while since my last blog. This post is to help those in the NHS whatever their role or position to consider that positive individuality makes for a better NHS . In embracing positive individuality all care will improve , status quo will be rocked and the NHS will develop doing things differently within your workplace.

Predictive text steps in as you type on your phone . Wikipedia have a link about predictive text CLICK HERE and surprisingly personal data in the way we write and assemble sentences means that each device is personalised to the user . This has set my brain off thinking that actually we are all diffferent generally. Sadly NHS management would like us to work in the same way a sort of “predictive” way of working . However humans are unpredictable that’s just how we are made. Are personalities and individualism therefore disregarded ? Let’s take for example shift work – some Trusts have a better family and also life friendly approach to staff . The Kings trust have researched that staff who are cared for and well-engaged make for a more successful NHS – that in turn has a positive effect on the people being cared for .

Midwifery cannot be like predictive text eg this is the way we do it , this is the length of time you need to help a woman, new offspring & partner postnatally before transfer to the ward and so on .

It’s time for managers to realise that each woman is as individual as the midwife who is “WITH” her . An acceptance that “this is the way that Midwife B works . Each midwife’s Way of working is in fact data. The midwife who spends longer explaining to the family who are going home (eg explaining symptoms of wellness , symptoms of illness , to contact the labour ward not the emergency department for advice , self care , and current evidence) is perceived as slower but in fact this is the midwife who probably is more thorough and probably a perfectionist who raises awareness in the women and families she meets .

If you ever get told you’re too slow – don’t take it as an insult take it as a compliment

You are dedicated , perceptive, compassionate, thorough and you promote self awareness to women and families

Keep on keeping on

Sending love to all the THOROUGH midwives nurses and other health care professionals out there in the NHS

Love , as always

Jenny ❤️

Babies, Being a mum, Being busy as a midwife, Birth, Breastfeeding, Caesarean section, Change management, Communication, Compassion, Courage, culture in nhs, data colllection, Giving information, Helping others, homebirth, Hospital, Human kindness, Midwife, Midwifery, Motherhood, New parents, Newborn, NHS, Obstetrics, Post traumatic stress disorder, Psychology, PTSD, Respect, Skin to skin contact, Student Midwives, Working from the heart, zero separation

#BirthLeadership ©️ is Born

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Today is an exciting day for me . I have just registered a new hashtag that I hope will influence every woman and midwife . The hashtag is

#BirthLeadership ©️

As a midwife one of my aims is to display leadership towards women in order to support them through their labour and birth . I hope that this cascades onto future midwives so that they too can show leadership. This process may involve eye contact , holding hands , a hand on a shoulder , researching,debating decisions, reading information, challenging the system BUT together as a team to help make women feel like they are the leaders of their own births . Whatever the mode of birth it’s right that midwives let go and give the lead control to the woman . This can be through education and sharing views but first and foremost it must be about midwives listening to women’s hearts, voices, dreams and plans.

Midwives begin by championing women’s choices so that birth is given back to women .

Sheena Byrom OBE and Professor Soo Downe of UCLAN co-wrote an research article called “She sort of shines” Click here for PDF

in Box 1 as above the midwives interviewed were asked about the connection between leadership identifying commonalities between both .

The huge psychological impact of having no voice in a birth is well documented and can have long term physiological effects on a woman’s mental health . Studies on post birth PTSD (Post traumatic stress disorder) often highlight the lost voice of the woman and her fear of speaking out .

Birth leadership is created so that every midwife questions her own practice in order to ask herself “am I displaying birth leadership skills?” – in other words “what am I giving to this woman and her birth to relinquish my control and give her the lead in her own birth”

Let’s take for example coached pushing in the second stage of labour something which is neither evidence based practice or conducive to effective care – yet still it goes on. Click here for NICE guidance in 2nd stage of labour April 19

Some midwives FOLLOW this tradition and their fear of changing practice influences others negatively, preventing birth leadership in some NHS maternity units.

We must become champion challengers and this doesn’t mean loudly-it can be quite subtle and indeed this quiet way is less likely to disrupt a woman’s oxytocin flow – promoting both a sense of security and safety .

Let’s talk optimal cord clamping – and how Amanda Burleigh knew in her midwifery bones that immediate cord clamping wasn’t quite right – it didn’t sit well in her midwifery skin- @OptimalCordClamping showed Birth Leadership and started to challenge research and change practice which led to optimal cord clamping (OCC) being included on NICE guidance – Quality statement on OCC Amanda’s Birth Leadership is ongoing and she has inspired others to talk about OCC by inspiring them for example Hannah Tizard who is @BloodToBaby on Twitter . This is true practice change for women and babies . Here’s Amanda’s twitter feed .

The way you act in and out of work shows the person you really are . Your aim should always be to help others as much as you’d help yourself – keep that formula equal every minute in your midwifery career and you won’t go wrong .

Women need to know we care ❤️

Try and wear a new pair of glasses when you go into work – sit in a different chair for your lunch , ask colleagues “what are my good and bad habits?”, question your usual behaviour and remember why you became a midwife – to give the lead to women.

Birth leadership is about small steps or huge steps beginning with the next woman you are with as she gives birth .

If you have shown birth leadership of any kind use #BirthLeadership and tweet about it

Here are a few Birth Leadership examples

SkinToSkin in the operating theatre

Not weighing a baby until after it’s first feed

Leading a woman to change position in the second stage to avoid lithotomy

Helping a woman to birth and hold her stillborn baby and making the family a safe space ❤️

Helping a woman who has been constantly monitored on CTG to the bathroom for a walk and a wash

Being silent as a woman is in the second stage of labour

Supporting a woman compassionately through a difficult birth

Helping a woman to avoid unnecessary internal examinations

Being a baby’s advocate when the woman is having a GA Caesarean

Holding a woman’s hand in an emergency situation

Caring for a woman’s relatives as well as the woman herself

Here is an uplifting reply from @FWmaternity co-founder of MatExp and inspiring obstetrician who is supportive of Midwives and promotes her Trusts home birth team ❤️

NB please don’t think this about starting a campaign yourself although that would be great it’s about sharing the little things that signify BirthLeadership to inspire change – so please add yours on Twitter ❤️

Thank you for reading

Yours in Birth leadership love

Jenny ❤️

PS

Please add your comments to my blog – I welcome all feedback

❤️Facilitate what is happening rather than what you think ought to be happening. If you must take the lead, lead so that the mother is helped, yet still free and in charge. When the baby is born, the mother will rightly say, “We did it ourselves!”

Tao Te Ching – ancient Chinese quote about what being a midwife means ❤️

Being busy as a midwife, Birth, Compassion, Courage, culture in nhs, Giving information, Helping others, Hospital, Human kindness, Kindness, Labour , birth, Labour and birth, leadership, Midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery and birth, Motherhood, New parents, Newborn, NHS, NHS Systems and processes, Night shifts in the NHS, Obstetrics, organisational development, shift handover, Student Midwives, Working from the heart

This is the way it’s always been – Labour ward night shift to day shift handover NHS ❤️

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You may find yourself on a NHS Labour ward at approximately 7am one morning . Everyone is assembling for morning handover . Over the shoulders is being lifted up into bobbles and held back by clips. Pens, hand-creams, mints , note books , mini hand gels all squeezed into powerful pockets. The “not allowed” mobiles are hidden from plain sight “just in case my son/daughter’s school need me” or to “google something”

Some night shift midwives sit in the office desperate to get home – they look worn out and you want to hug them saying “you will go home on time” but you know it’s a lie Other midwives are out of sight – they remain “with woman” in rooms praying that the handover will go smoothly with minimal interruptions. They want the transition from one midwife to another to be compassionate, woman centred, slow and not hurried .

“Don’t forget the midwife on the birth centre – the woman she’s midwifing is in the pool and about to give birth any minute” says the maternity support worker as she leaves . “Has that Midwife had a break?” – “Not sure” comes the reply.

Drs hang around to chip in with their findings and recommendations as well as chomping on leftover unappetising snacks from the tea trolley. The wheeled aluminium “redeployed” dressing trolley cocoons several slices of curled up toast covered with re solidified butter and cups of cold tea in a hard steel exterior as if to say “this wasn’t my original job”

Seats are hard to come by and woe betide the future midwife who gets a chair before a senior Midwife . Some staff arrive late and hide just behind the door pretending they’ve been there all along – but they did go home late last night . Not one manager in sight .

There are comments circulating “I didn’t leave until 10pm last night!! ” “I’ve only had one day post nights now I’m back on days” “my son is poorly but I’ve sent him to school” “how is ***** in room 2?” “who is in theatre ?”

The labour ward lead’s face demands silence – report starts 3 minutes late – you can taste the angst .

The night staff are supposed to finish their shift approximately 15 minutes after the day shift start theirs . The night shift rarely leave on time and luckily someone has the foresight to recognise that the maternity support workers can go home as their reinforcements have arrived to take over – they like the new shift midwives and Drs smell of new freshly applied deodorant . Many perfumes and aftershaves mingle and brighten up the stale office air. The virtual RHS of the NHS in one tiny space.

Now do the math -for one lead Midwife to hand over the cases and care of 8-16 women to the other in just 5 minutes (depending on the different labour wards in the nhs ) so that the day team can split and go to their allocated families, THEN have another more detailed handover (but VERY similar in principal to the one in the handover room) is nigh on impossible- in fact it is INCROYABLE.

So many night staff leave late – some have many miles and hours to drive or travel in a post nights shift state of mind in order to reach the comfort of their own slumber stations. Some wisely choose to pay to sleep in hospital accommodation as they daren’t risk driving. Others travel as they don’t want to be away from home , they need to be up at 2.30pm to collect their children or their children’s children from school and then possibly cook dinner then prepare themselves for their third or fourth night shift .

Staff leave but not before putting their “time owing” in the designated book – it’s not paid you see – even thought leaving late is beyond their control . This is the NHS

So what’s the solution ? I’m not sure there even is one. If you compare the way office workers start their day there is a great disparity happening between humans who work.

It’s about time staff handover had a shake up – be punctual, be succinct , keep your opinions out of report , respect ALL. Allow each midwife to handover each women / family she/he is caring for with the back up of a written SBAR and encourage the lead midwife to take a step back . Someone somewhere must have an idea ??

It’s a handover state of mind .

We are all leaders

Thank you for reading

My thoughts

Jenny The M ❤️©

Being busy as a midwife, Change management, Communication, Compassion, Courage, Discharge planning, Giving information, Helping others, Hospital, Labour and birth, Learning, Midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery and birth, NHS, NHS Systems and processes, Obstetrics, Postnatal care, sepsis, Women's health, Working from the heart

Here is your role as a NHS Midwife …… my suggestions

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Here is your role as a Midwife in the NHS

  1. learn about the guidelines and policies at your place of work .
  2. Complete your mandatory training come hell or high water despite not being given allocated time to do so
  3. Get up in the morning / the evening travel to work be on time , report for duty .
  4. Push yourself each day to be a little better than you were the day before
  5. When you are upset about something try and soldier on because everyone else is in the same situation
  6. Support new midwives and future midwives – be a role model as everyone takes note of the way you behave at work (don’t for a minute think that they don’t !)
  7. Practice 1-5 each day now add in caring  for women families ,getting along with your colleagues , getting a break everyday and leaving your shift on time

Stick to …….

Wait a minute Wait a minute.   REWIND REWIND REWIND ……

  1. Get on Twitter and join the community of midwives there sharing evidence based practice
  2. Immerse yourself in the computer system that will give you stats for your own practice (as well as others ) and look at how to improve them.
  3. Practice a daily ritual that is kind to you – respect yourself and your body clock get fresh air and sunlight each day pre or post shift Watch this programme “The body clock- what makes us tick?” on the relevance light (measured in LUX) has on the body clock and circadian rhythm .
  4. When you are happy and /or upset about something try and reflect on it through writing or recordings and seek advice from your occupational Health dept. Team up with another midwife from a different NHS trust and see yourselves as support buddies , reflect together on what helps you at work and learn new positive ways of staying focused and compassionate in your midwifery work
  5. Be professional in all you do through the your words / deeds / behaviour towards others including the way you communicate on your break – integrity is a huge part of being a Midwife . The words you speak in the office / break room and out of work are like a fragrance upon you when you are caring / mentoring and teaching.
  6. Having a break is set into statutory employment law – it ain’t no privilege – so plan your own break and get away from your work environment eat your food in a quiet place, do three minutes of mindfulness – your break time belongs to YOU – if you can’t take the full amount at once try breaking into bite sized amounts so you can eat / / rest / reflect but perhaps on three short breaks instead of one long one -also support your colleagues to do the same
  7. If you are a manager/head of midwifery consider how you get your lunch and try to be a role model – go and eat with the staff you manage – you might find out more through this than leading meetings
  8. If you hear a group talking about another colleague in a derogatory manner then challenge them why are they discussing someone who isn’t there to defend themself, then ask them to stop – if you choose to ignore this kind of behaviour you are condoning it
  • Always remember you are not at work to socialise but to put the women and families at the heart of what you do . If you find yourself questioning a colleagues work style – ask yourself this “is that colleague putting the woman first ? “
  • You’ll probably find the answer for the style of work is because the answer is YES!! So if you have a colleague who may seems to take a little longer with women or isn’t seen in the office much try and shadow them – sometimes taking some extra time can be more cost effective – a long chat pre discharge can arm women with knowledge about how to recognise SEPSIS , help her to recognise when her baby is feeding well or not and also to pickup POSTNATAL DEPRESSION earlier .
  • These are just my thoughts and it’s my first blog for ages so I hope you enjoy it
  • Be kind ❤️
  • Yours in midwifery love
  • Jenny ❤️©️2018
    • Against the odds, Babies, Being a mum, Being busy as a midwife, Birth, Breastfeeding, Caesarean section, Change management, Communication, Compassion, Giving information, Helping others, Hospital, Human kindness, Kindness, Labour , birth, Labour and birth, MatExp, Midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery and birth, Motherhood, New parents, Newborn, NHS Systems and processes, Obstetrics, Postnatal care, Respect, Skin to skin contact, Student Midwives, Women's health, Women's rights, Working from the heart, Young mothers, Young women

    Postnatal transfer to the ward from labour ward – my thoughts

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    A DM (Direct Message) on Twitter is a message you receive from someone that no one else can see – apart from the people included in the message.

    In the past four weeks I have received 7 DMs from a mixture of midwives , future midwives and women all with the same subject matter . This subject is mainly about ‘who decides when a woman is transferred from the room she gave birth in to the postnatal ward’ This seems to be a hot topic at the moment as the variation in time from birth to transfer is huge – especially when comparing Caesarean birth transfers to other birth transfers (and it might surprise you to know that the variation in birth to transfer time to the ward for women who have Caesarean birth is also vast – some units care for these women on the labour ward until their spinal has worn off , some units transfer to ward within a short time in recovery which leads me to question that support with breastfeeding must be patchy).

    Just the other week at Salford University Midwifery Society Conference ‘Transforming Birth’ click HERE for a summary of the day – I asked a question to the audience “are you, as future midwives pressured to move women to the postnatal ward (after they have birthed their babies) faster than the women themselves would like or you as a future autonomous practitioner would like ?” The result was that over 80% said YES.

    Do we as Midwives consider our own autonomy enough when we are working ? In order to give the woman a sense of feeling cared for and nurtured individualised, compassionate, holistic midwifery is paramount . Each woman is different- some may prefer a rapid transfer , others may not . Some women may need extra support to establish breastfeeding or be debriefed post birth or some women may want to rest in a quiet place with minimal noise before they are moved to the ward . If a birth takes place in a birth centre which doesn’t focus on time , women will stay in the same room post birth until their discharge home.

    In the NHS patient care sadly revolves around the concept of time . If a patient is not seen , admitted or discharged within a four hour time frame (see photo below ) it is considered a “breach”

    Certain procedures have a standard time frame in which so many can be done – this is how operating theatre lists are generated and how the NHS deals with waiting lists .

    However birth is and must be a positive experience – even though it has coding costs and some births are planned to the day -we must give women more than they expect – stand up for them , be their advocates. Challenging the system is one of the ways we can make change happen – if we all accept each day “this is the way we do this” we cannot be developing our roles or our practice to improve woman centred care . I’m not saying it’s easy but I want you to imagine what care you would want for your sisters and your daughters ? Then give the women THIS care – I am in the NHS as I nursed my own mother until her death at home – I see the connection between care at birth and care at death . I have been a nurse to the dying and that experience has impacted on the care I give to women in a most human way .

    Whatever care you give , whether you transfer a woman in your fastest time or not is all rather irrelevant when you focus on the bigger picture – YOU are responsible for the care you provide , or you don’t provide -if you tell a student to do something that is YOUR responsibility and I suggest referring to this NMC publication which I look at each day The NMC CODE . If advice or suggestions are not kind , caring and have a direct clash with your duty of care , if a more senior Midwife tells you to do something this should be documented in the notes and be evidence based, kind and resonate with your trust guidelines plus the NMC code.

    Sometimes we are stretched short staffed , rushed and under pressure but at no point should this be the woman’s problem.

    So the next time you are preparing a woman for transfer to a ward just think

    • Have I given her & her partner enough time alone with their newborn
    • Have I helped initiate feeding
    • Am I rushing her ?
    • Do I feel under pressure ?

    Then if necessary give her some more time – and when you arrive on the ward give continuity of care to the woman and her newborn by transferring in SkinToSkin contact , admitting them both to the ward environment yourself , taking and recording observations , checking the woman’s pad and fundus ,getting the woman a drink and this will also help your colleagues on the ward immensely.

    ❤️Be a holistic professional caring Midwife ❤️

    Thank you to the student of Salford University and those who DM’d me on Twitter – you inspired this blog

    Thank you for reading

    Yours in midwifery love

    JennyTheM

    ❤️

    Anaesthetics, Antenatal education, Anxiety, Being busy as a midwife, Birth, Change management, Communication, Compassion, Fear of Birth, Giving information, Helping others, Hospital, Human kindness, Kindness, Labour , birth, Labour and birth, MatExp, Midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery and birth, Newborn, NHS, NHS Systems and processes, Obstetrics, Paediatrics, Psychology, PTSD, Respect, Women's health, Women's rights, Young mothers, Young women

    Loss of control – a reason for fear of birth ? 

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    When any of us are admitted to hospital we lose control . We are unable to get a hot drink when we want one , eat what we want when we want to ,take simple pain relief , go to the toilet , sleep as well as we would at home , get up in the night or stay in bed longer . We are also unable to control what we hear , what we see . We lose our safe place of home and being surrounded by friends and family – it feels lonely and alien to us . This doesn’t mean that we are not able to adapt to new situations it’s just that more than a few things change and this throws a curveball towards us .  The fear we feel is because we feel we are handing ourselves and our bodies , our routines and home comforts over to others, they are dismissed  – this has quite a destabilising effect on our psyche . 

    A key part of NICE CG190 guidelines for care in labour encourages midwives to set the scene for women. The section I am going to focus on is COMMUNICATION – which is part of 1.2 Care throughout labour (click on the following numbers to be taken to the site)  CG190 

    I have copied and pasted the exact words and written the key words in CAPITALS below to help highlight their impact – does it make you think about them differently ? 

    COMMUNICATION 

    1.2.1 Treat ALL women in labour with RESPECT . Ensure that the woman is in CONTROL of and involved in what is happening to her, and recognise that the way in which care is given is key to this. To FACILITATE this, ESTABLISH a RAPPORT with the woman, ASK her about her WANTS  and EXPECTATIONS for labour, and be AWARE of the importance of TONE and DEMEANOUR , and of the ACTUAL WORDS used. Use this information to SUPPORT and GUIDE her through her labour.

    1.2.2 To ESTABLISH communication with the woman:

    GREET     the woman with a SMILE and a personal WELCOME, establish her LANGUAGE NEEDS , INTRODUCE yourself   “#HelloMyNameIs”

    explain your ROLE in her CARE .
    Maintain a CALM and CONFIDENT approach so that your demeanour REASSURES the woman that all is going well.

    KNOCK     and WAIT before entering the WOMAN’S ROOM , respecting it as her PERSONAL SPACE , and ask others to do the same.

    ASK     how the woman is FEELING and whether there is anything in particular she is WORRIED about.
    If the woman has a written BIRTH PLAN , READ  and DISCUSS it with her.

    ASSESS     the woman’s KNOWLEDGE of strategies for coping with pain –PROVIDE  BALANCED INFORMATION to find out which available approaches are ACCEPTABLE to her.

    ENCOURAGE the woman to ADAPT to the environment to meet her INDIVIDUAL needs.
    Ask her PERMISSION before all PROCEDURES and OBSERVATIONS, FOCUSING  on the WOMAN  rather than the TECHNOLOGY or the DOCUMENTATION .

    SHOW the woman and her birth companion(s) how to summon HELP and REASSURE her that she may do so WHENEVER  and as OFTEN  as SHE NEEDS to. When LEAVING  the ROOM, LET her know when you WILL return.

    INVOLVE     the woman in any HANDOVER OF CARE  to another professional, EITHER when ADDITIONAL EXPERTISE has been brought in or at THE END OF THE SHIFT. 

    Every person who cares for (no matter how short a time ) a woman in labour should follow this guidance and I feel there should be posters up on maternity units in all languages which emphasise that this will happen . 

    There are many barriers to communication and one that most midwives, student midwives , maternity health care assistants , obstetricians and anaesthetists agree on is that time, pressure and NHS systems restricts our practice. I want to have laminated cards that go with the analgesia cards to explain why kindness and compassion will also help ease women’s pain . Fear is a huge factor in the perception of pain and if we try to reduce fear we might help reduce not only  pain but also anxiety and then by this we will gain trust and build on positive care. 

    As the  midwifery workforce we must start to say to ourselves “how would I feel ? ” another question which is used on the Nye Bevan leadership module is this …. 

    Lets keep sharing our ideas and thoughts and if you have any more relating to CG190 – tweet using #CG190 or why not write a blog or design a poster ? 
    Thank you for reading and please leave comments , I always value them and they help me to reflect and grow . 


    Yours in midwifery love 

    Jenny ❤️

    Babies, Being busy as a midwife, Birth, Compassion, Courage, Giving information, Helping others, Hospital, Human kindness, Kindness, Labour , birth, Labour and birth, Learning, MatExp, Midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery and birth, Motherhood, New parents, Newborn, NHS, NHS Systems and processes, Obstetrics, Patient care, Respect, Uncategorized, Women's health, Women's rights, Working from the heart

    With woman midwifery 

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    ❤️Before I start I’d like to thank Soo Downe for using this photo of me with my pinards in her slides during this years EMA ❤️ &  thanks to Jacque Gerrard RCM for letting me know. 

    Hello , are you a midwife ? Have you ever heard or said any of the following sentences ? 

    “I’m coming in the office for a few minutes , they don’t want me in there all the time” 

    “I’ll leave you in peace for a while – you don’t need me here all the time” 

    “I’m giving them some time to themselves whilst she’s in the early stages” 

    There is evidence and research to prove unanimously that women who have continuous one to one care have less pain relief , more incidence of normal birth , less perineal trauma and feel more positive about their birth process . As midwives there’s always information to share and explain that the woman may not know about . I also view my role as a guardian to the partner making sure he or she feels involved and free to ask questions . So the next time you hear yourself or a colleague say “I’m leaving the couple I’m caring for as they don’t need me in their birth room all the time” just remember leaving them  isn’t evidence based practice – staying with them totally is 

    Resources on continuity 

    http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/store/10.1002/14651858.CD004667.pub5/asset/CD004667.pdf?v=1&t=iwl6t8eo&s=72d734e7de6a3665a8d183e2d5df1492e37dc2ec

    http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673616314726

    http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0266613816300572 

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    #LeadToAdd 

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    LeadToAdd click HERE to learn more is the latest NHS England campaign # is #LeadToAdd. As a Caremaker I will be linking this on Twitter with my work on #skinToskin , #futuremidwives and #couragebutter to inspire others to see themselves as leaders regardless of their role . Patients, women, families and non-clinical staff are also leaders .  
    I feel this will inspire/activate different meanings to different people

    Here are some of my thoughts around it

    What does to lead mean ? 
    To take charge , to be at the front , to inspire , to educate, to be diverse 
    Leading is about being at the front and CONSTANTLY looking back to bring others with you

    Leading is about being the first to begin something but not necessarily holding onto that but looking at how your actions impact on the way others fulfil their role. Leading is being a positive role model, leading is about looking inwards at your own behaviour and also looking outwards at the behaviour of others . 

    In the NHS all staff need encouragement to recognise themselves as leaders and also to see that some behaviours do not embody leadership. We are all learning each day, so don’t stay still – question yourself and the way you speak to others . Ask a colleague to listen to you talking to patients and staff and to give you feedback -what could you change ? Integrate telephone conversations into drills training-  talk to your practice development team – think outside the box . 

    Someone who leads others into poor practice is a poor leader but a leader non the less so be aware of your own commitment to pass the positive leadership baton . We are human and it’s ok to make mistakes , however we must learn, evolve and change .

    The other day I had a car journey with Joan Pons Laplana (@ThebestJoan on twitter) and once again he made me think hard about how the 6Cs are integrated into practice . Joan said to me that as a health care professional all tasks and procedures must embody the 6Cs – even answering a telephone call. 
    As a form of reflection I’d like you to read passage one and then passage two
    Passage One 
    Busy labour ward – phone ringing , midwife answered the phone – we will call the person making the call Tony and his partner who is having a baby is called Dolores. The midwives name will be Darcy . 
    Midwife ( confident and cheery) ” hello labour ward , midwife speaking how can I help you?”
    Tony (nervous voice) ” oh hi – err my partner thinks she’s in labour , it’s our first baby and we are a bit nervous . Could I ask you some questions , she’s here but having a contraction right now and then she feels sick for a few minutes after its gone. 
    Midwife “oh right well I need to talk to her please and decide what’s happening’  
    I’m not going to continue this but could the midwife change her approach ? Is this midwife you ? A colleague? This approach has been learnt from a peer
    Passage Two 

    Busy labour ward – phone ringing , midwife answered the phone – we will call the person making the call Tony and his partner who is having a baby is called Dolores. The midwives name will be Darcy . ….

    Midwife ( confident and cheery) ” hello labour ward , my name is Darcy Jones I’m a midwife and how can I help you?”
    Tony (nervous voice) ” oh hi Darcy – I’m Tony – err my partner Dolores thinks she’s in labour , it’s our first baby and we are a bit nervous . Could I ask you some questions , she’s here but having a contraction right now and then she feels sick for a few minutes after its gone. 
    Midwife “ok well I would like to take some details first whilst Dolores has a contraction . Thank you so much for ringing us . How are you feeling ? This is your first baby ? How exciting for you both!” 
    I’m not going to continue this but could the midwife change her approach In either scenario – which is the best one in your opinion ?  ? Is either of these scenarios you ? A colleague? This approach has been learnt from a peer. 
    So you see two examples each one leaving the person contacting  the service with different emotions . 
    Start your journey as a #LeadToAdd leader today  ❤️
    Thank you for reading 
    Love , Jenny ❤️

    Antenatal education, Babies, Being busy as a midwife, Birth, Breastfeeding, Caesarean section, Change management, Children, Compassion, Courage, Helping others, Hospital, Human rights, Intra-operative care, Kindness, Labour and birth, Learning, Manual removal of the placenta, MatExp, Media, Midwife, Midwifery, Midwifery and birth, New parents, Newborn, Newborn attachment, NHS, NHS Systems and processes, Obstetrics, Patient care, Post traumatic stress disorder, Postnatal care, Respect, Skin to skin contact, Surgery, Teaching, Women's health, Women's rights, Young mothers, Young women

    The natural caesarean / the gentle caesarean 

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    There’s a debate on Twitter this morning about the ‘natural caesarean’ as a term that promotes a positive experience of birth by caesarean. I don’t agree with the term and I think as health care professionals working in the area of birth we should ensure that every birth is a positive birth . Milli Hill started the The Positive Birth Movement  with this goal in mind (@birthpositive on Twitter ) 

    Bearing this in mind I’d like to ask the following questions for you to consider and share with with your colleagues, family , friends , midwives and obstetricians . 
    1. How many women who have an emergency caeserean and/or instrumental birth (forceps or ventouse) are given information in the antenatal period about the far reaching health and psychological benefits of skin to skin contact in this setting to both mother and baby ? 

    2. Compare the above with how many women are given information about  skin to skin contact around normal birth ? 

    3. Compare both to how many woman are informed that skin to skin is possible during manual removal of placenta and repair of any perineal trauma in the theatre setting ? 

    4. Are women informed 

    • They can TELL midwives to defer the weighing of their newborn in order to enjoy the benefits of prolonged skin to skin contact 
    • That they should never be separated from their baby unless a clinical situation becomes apparent or they themselves choose not to have skin to skin contact despite being FULLY informed
    • That their baby could ‘self latch’ at the breast without any handling by staff and also correct its own acidosis and stabilise its own breathing because of skin to skin contact ? 
    • That skin to skin and early breastfeeding “Pronurturance ” is linked to a reduction in the incidence of  postpartum haemorrhage?  CLICK RIGHT HERE for the Pronurturance paper 
    • That if babies could talk they would choose skin to skin contact despite their birth environment 
    • That skin to skin contact is the building block for a persons social and psychological development 

    The midwives and staff on social media who talk about caesarean are not promoters of it , they are giving women information about choice – so that if the operation (which is major surgery) does take place then these women are able to not only enjoy their birth experience but give their relationship with their baby the best possible start . 

    I suppose it’s similar to the question “does having a teenage pregnancy strategy increase teenage pregnancy rates ?  (and I much prefer the term  “young women”to ‘teenage pregnancy’) 

    Does having full information about your choices if you do go on to have a caeserean increase caesarean rates ? I don’t know the answer to either of these questions but I do know that the women I have assisted and sometimes fought for to have skin to skin contact with their newborns in different birth situations have all told me this 

     
    -that they never realised the positive impact it had on them as a successful mother

    To me this is enough .   
    Thank you for reading 

    With love , Jenny ❤️

    I am also promoting #MatExp as a platform which enables and encourages discussion between women, families and health care professionals .