Dear Nicky,
Many thanks for the pep talk. I must have been caught in the down draft of
the John Hunter news. Of course we will all keep plugging away. My mentor
was one of the original radical midwives in the U.K. and mate of Jilly
Rosser,Cronk and Co. so I have had a good apprenticeship and come from being
from one very conservative midwife who thought homebirth was irresponsible,
to one committed to it for the last 16 years. Thanks again, Regards, mary
Murphy
----- Original Message -----
From: Nicky Leap <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, August 10, 1999 11:38 AM
Subject: Change
> Dear Mary and midwives on the list
> What is happening at the John Hunter is deplorable and it highlights how
> vulnerable individual innovative projects are. I hope everyone will write
> and say how important this project is in the development of woman-centred
> maternity services in Australia. The same thing happened to the project
> that I used to work in and it drove us into finding a way to be part of
> mainstream (NHS) service provision. I am heartened by the number of
> hospitals in South Australia who are thinking of moving towards changing
> the whole maternity service they provide in order to offer continuity of
> care to all women.
>
> In relation to comments about the difference in climate here compared to
> the disillusionment in the UK - these are only impressions and no doubt
> it's foolish to generalise - but being a compulsive Polyanna I feel
> compelled to suggest that because midwifery here has got a much bigger job
> to do to create change there is a huge commitment here that is lacking in
> much of the UK (where most of the resistance is from midwives and of
course
> there are still brilliant things happening there - it's not all doom and
> gloom). It's easier to be complacent if you're giving a reasonable service
> to women in the first place. The vision and enthusiasm of midwives on this
> list (and at the New Models Conference in Adelaide last year) reminds me
of
> the climate in the Association of Radical Midwives back in the 1980s. This
> 'coming together' in recognition of the need for radical change resulted
in
> catalysts like 'The Vision and the re-introduction of 'direct entry'
> programmes - changes that could not have been predicted in the early 80s.
> So I'm feeling really positive about what we are doing here which isn't to
> underestimate how grim it is many areas and how frustrating it is at
times.
>
> Mary - you asked about the Nurses Act in SA. We almost got a Nurses and
> Midwives Act. Not quite this time - but as always the process was crucial
> to raising important midwifery issues. The Midwives Act Lobby Group (a
> group of active women and midwives) continue to meet to work on the issues
> and have important resources to share. The Democrats were very supportive,
> particularly Sandra Kank who took on our cause in the upper house - so we
> did get a loose definition of a midwife and 'midwifery' included in the
> final Bill.
>
> What continues to be a primary issue is the need to define midwifery as a
> separate profession to nursing in a way that makes sense to nursing and
> does not alienate everyone - old rhetoric about wellness, holistic care
and
> practitioners is not going to get us anywhere and doesn't make sense in
> relation to developments in either profession. I could go on about this
but
> need to get down to some work - it's the stuff of my paper for Hobart if
> anyone is interested.
>
> And yes Mary - please keep speaking out even when it feels like a lonely
> place to be. Some of the best changes have come about because people with
> vision 'talked them up'!
> Nicky
>
>
> Nicky Leap, Senior Research Fellow, Midwifery
> The Flinders University of South Australia, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA
5001
> Tel: (08) 8201 3442 Fax: (08) 8201 3410
> Home: 'Cennednyss', Summertown, SA 5141 Tel/Fax: (08) 8390 1069
>
>
--
This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics.
Visit <http://www.acegraphics.com.au> to subscribe or unsubscribe.
