Midwifery is catching

Some numbers for your amusement after 3 days of placement:

Number of nappy changes - 19
Number of babies caught - 0
Number of labours attended - 2
Number of women I (silently) cheered on while they said no to interventions they didn’t want - 1
Number of "social" c-sections I’ve seen in 3 days - 14 (on a 16-bed ward)
Number of CTGs I’ve done myself - 4
Number of obs I’ve taken - countless
Number of times I’ve worn scrubs - 1
Number of babies fed - 5
Number of epidurals I’ve seen inserted - 1
Number of catheters I’ve seen inserted - 2
Number of catheters I’ve taken out - 2

Number of times I’ve questioned whether I’m doing the right thing - 0

I won’t say it’s easy. It’s hard going. My placement is with a private hospital used to taking 2nd years who have way more of a clue than I do. I’d forgotten that uni really and truly doesn’t prepare you for the real world and in this case my skills set on Monday was minimal. I knew how to do a manual BP and temp and pulse but not drive the machine to do so automatically. I learnt quickly but it means being stressed while not knowing. I got offered a case load, whereas I really and truly was happy to muck in and do whatever under supervision. I am overwhelmed with all the things that go on around me and I can’t remember whether I’m coming or going.

It’s also hard going from a spiritual side of things. It’s hard to know what to say about it all. Maybe some sleep might help.

Alrighty - it’s nearly crunch time. Tomorrow at some point I am off for my first day of placement at a local hospital but because of my accident…

Oh, right. I don’t think I mentioned this part.

but because of me being knocked off my scooter last week (not my fault! Honest - entirely 100% her fault for not stopping at a roundabout) I have a broken finger which should make the whole thing a whole lot of not fun in terms of doing anything right handed (like, dominant handed) or wearing gloves. I actually don’t know what time I start tomorrow. I am going to call to see what time "late" shift starts though (the answer is 2:24pm). They seem to know that I’m coming so I have a good feeling about all of this.

Uni puddles on. I still don’t have a mark for an assignment I handed up more than a month ago and it’s a week late (the mark, not my assignment). I have placement and then 2 exams and it’s going to be a challenge because I can’t write very well.

Antenatal apppointments are the high point of this course. I have one f/t due early July, one due early August, and one in December. So I need to find some more for the rest of the year! If I think about it too much I want to cry because it’s really stressful but I’m hoping that placement will help that out. 

Today I had my first antenatel appointment. No, unlike someone I kind of know, I’m not G1P0 . But I attended my first appointment with a follow-through. It’s taken me this long to get to one and today’s was at the clinic. At the clinic there was a veritable sea of pregnant women. More than I’ve ever seen in one place.

My heart sang.

In the next two hours, I got to see a baby moving inside her mother’s tummy (it’s a cute way of saying it but saying "the foetus move inside its sac in the mother’s abdomen" is no where near as romantic!), kicking our hands away as we felt where she was lying.

And - I got to take blood! It was my FIRST EVAH time on a real person (as compared to the fake arm I learnt on) and I did it really well as well! 

I wish I had deep and meaningful things to say right now, but I don’t. I am in a bit of lull before the storm, when I am back at uni but only 1 day a week instead of the previous 5, and while still working on some subjects in my own time, for the most I’m not doing a lot of work. Heck, I’ve only got 3 subjects this semester anyway, and one of them is dominated by my practicum in 16 days. I am doing a lot of dyeing, knitting and so forth, and doing things with Birth Matters and the Home Birth Network. Ooer subversive first year student that I am! I have just 2 exams this semester so I count myself very lucky. They are on 16/05 and 19/05 and then I get 5 and a bit weeks holidays.

Eep - placement is not very long away at all! I have moved my placement back to an Adelaide hospital, and I have a nice pattern of shifts (late, early, early, early, late) and the weekends off. A fairly easy ease into the whole process I think. I may not be saying that when I get there though!

In other news, I have joined the ultimate political party recently formed in Australia. What Women Want (Australia) aims to be Australia’s only female political party dedicated to advancing issues affecting Australian women. What Women Want (Australia) will dedicate its work to giving women more of a say in the direction of our country and the important policies that shape it. The work of What Women Want (Australia) will not exclude men, as we know that they play an important role in many women’s lives.

What Women Want (Australia) simply wants to promote greater participation from women of all ages. We believe that everyone in our society will benefit from that, particularly children and men with families.