Today I got to meet the midwife who works at the farm house, which is like an Amish birth center. It was cool to meet her finally. It was only a few weeks ago that I found out there was a birth center near. She showed us IV and venipuncture. I was less nervous than I thought I would be and I got my needles in the fake arm every time! Score! But I have no doubt I will be very nervous the first time I do it on a person. Overall, it was cool to practice and not be afraid that I would hurt someone. The challenge will be remembering exactly what is written in the skills book though.
I also attended my ultrasound appointment today at a doctor’s office. I thought it was ironic that in the waiting room, a poster had a poem entitled “The Ambulance Down in the Valley,” which basically means that prevention is better than the cure. If this doctor believes that—then this is the place for me! The ultrasound tech, Deb, was very friendly and a great resource to have in your back pocket. We made small talk until her first client, an artery scan, arrived. It was a middle-aged woman who had high cholesterol, so the doctor wanted to get an ultrasound of her arteries in her neck. The whole scan took maybe 10 minutes. It was cool to see what she was looking at and have her explain it as she was going along. I have had many scans, but it is not only uncomfortable to crane your neck, but half the time you are undressed, with a flimsy paper gown on, so you hardly feel like listening intently and trying to decipher line drawings on a screen. This shadowing was an excellent experience.
Her second visitor was a woman who needed a pelvic scan for right ovary pain and dysmenorrhea. Plus, her periods were unpredictable. She was in her mid-30’s and had 2 previous uneventful pregnancies and births. She was not pregnant now. So she was sent to check it out. It was neat seeing the ovaries. She had a few cysts (or at least that is what Deb called them) on her ovaries. I would have called them corpus luteum degenerating, but didn’t really know. Thankfully, we saw what we need to on her, otherwise we would have had to use the vaginal probe. And I have had one of those—it isn’t something you need someone else watching. However, we didn’t find anything noticeable and sent her on her way. Deb showed me several different cases in our ‘down-time’ between clients and we discussed practically every part of the body, except hearts. She doesn’t do hearts. One of the cases we looked at involved a 3-year old boy, which troubled me. He was taken to the doctor since he was using the bathroom all day at his preschool. I just want to know—how many 3-year olds (potty-training ones at that) have mastered getting it all out on one go? Who knows, this poor boy may get beaten or something if he comes home with wet pants. This made me want to go track down his teachers and tell them that if they don’t know normal physiology of a 3-year-old then maybe they should find a different profession! Little kids urinate often and if his urinating is not the problem then maybe the teachers should make the bathroom less inviting to hang out in!
Overall, it was nice to bounce ideas off a professional and be treated like one in return. I felt respected, even though we differ in opinions on whether an ultrasound is needed or not. What I didn’t like was that she was essentially diagnosing these women. I mean I love assurance, but your insurance does not cover you to be saying stuff your mouth can’t cash. It was out of her scope of practice to say anything medical to these women. Her job is to say, Hi, here is your gown, this jelly will be cold….etc. Maybe this prevention better than cure place is different? Maybe reassurance really is the cure?
My Journey as a Licensed Midwife in Louisiana 