Re: RWH Bris Birth Centre Update

[megan davidson]

Congratulations Debbie, on achieving the rare goal of negotiating your care (sucessfully) with a large hospital. I am very pleased to see that it can be done.   There is just one thing, however, that concerns me   "Pat indicated that some of the patients who go to the labour suite have dubious cleanliness habits and she would prefer I don't labour with ROM in those baths but the BC baths are not used as often and the clientelle is different"   Don't they clean the baths between clients? Who is to be considered as possesing "dubious cleanliness habits"? I am sure that we have had clients in our birthing unit which may have been seen as dubious, however that has never prevented them or any of our other "clean" clients from using the bath. Surely the birthing center should be using their bath more? What makes their clients so different?   Yours in "dubious cleanliness" Megan ----- Original Message ----- From: Debby M To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, June 14, 2002 8:05 PM Subject: RWH Bris Birth Centre Update Hi Lynn and the other ladies and gents on the board, Well some interesting occurrences in my battle to achieve a minimal to non intervention birth at Royal Women's Brisbane. I received a letter from Stephen Ayres one of the admin type OBs late last week that basically told me to go jump and there was no way I could go to the Birth Centre.  That the policy review was a generic one not a Birth Centre specific one and that was that. Telling me out and out no is never a good idea - I'm too stubborn to accept that - so via Kevin Forbes I sent the hospital back an email that was a major dummy spit basically saying if they wouldn't compromise with me then I wasn't going to compromise with them either and listing a whole heap of standard protocols with which I would fail to provide any consent. The next day I received a call from Pat Schneider (head of nursing services at RWH), who some of you probably know, and we arranged to meet this morning.  She indicated on the phone that she felt she could offer me some good compromises and was apologetic that the issue had taken so long to come to any sort of resolution. So off I toddled to my ante natal visit with Anne Mc-T (my doula) who some of you also probably know and we had a lovely chat with Pat.  The compromises she has offered me were fantastic.  Although I still cannot be admitted to the Birth Centre as a birth centre patient I am getting basically a birth centre birth right next door (literally).  Pat has arranged for one of the BC midwives to be my midwife for the remainder of my pregnancy and for my delivery - so I get my continuity of care.  She also offered to be on call herself in case there were any issues. The room they are going to try to save for me is the one right next to the entrance to the BC so that my support team and I will have full access to the BCs general facilities as would a BC patient. I have full permission to rearrange the room how I please (nesting big time) to make the environment as unclinical (read unthreatening) as I need including putting the standard hospital bed away and putting the bed mattress on the floor - dim lights, music, any personal items the works. (This may seem odd but with my first VBAC I had a failure to progress for about 6 hrs that started when I got to hospital and the only thing I can put it to was being tensed up by the hospital clinical environment). The midwife I have been assigned is trained in supporting women in labour and also in water birth.  There is a bath in the room I am being assigned which I can use anytime up to ROM, and if I still wish to use water after ROM then I may be allowed to labour in one of the BC baths for a while. (Pat indicated that some of the patients who go to the labour suite have dubious cleanliness habits and she would prefer I don't labour with ROM in those baths but the BC baths are not used as often and the clientelle is different). I will not be forced to have CTG at all but if it is felt that it is needed at any point - ie. dubious doppler readings - it will be discussed with me and any question of fetal distress will be confirmed with fetal ph testing. I also do not have to have a drip or a bung although I have agreed to sign a disclaimer to this effect but that doesn't worry me as I did the same thing with the OB who did my first VBAC. I think Pat will be a breath of fresh air for the hospital.  >From a few other things she told us she is very pro making both a safe and emotionally satisfying environment.  She acknowledged that some of the changes she wants to make will take time and I appreciate that and hope that my pushing and the outcomes I have achieved will go at least some of the way in opening some lateral thinking options for other women who don't want the standard clinical model. I have written back to Karen Simpson (state shadow minister and the one who has been the most supportive) to advise her I am happy for this resolution from my perspective, but urged her to keep pushing the Minister for promotion of policies and information that allow women to make informed choices and to have a wider choice of birthing models - in particular an increase in both public and private midwifery models. So whilst this isn't what I had originally planned and I didn't get the policy changed like I was hoping - for me it is personally a good compromise and with any luck my actions will have seen the door open a little bit for some good changes for other women. Thankyou for the support you ladies have offered I think this is a wonderful forum and admire what each of you is trying to or has achieved in your roles as midwives/ advocates/ students and mothers. Debby Miller **************** Some of you may remember the entry made on my behalf by Toni about having a 2nd VBAC birth at the Birth Centre at RWH. I have managed to secure a review of the policy, with the suggestion that they implement a study into the safety of VBAC in the RWH Birth Centre utilising women who have already had a successful VBAC (the lowest risk group). This is currently under consideration and I have been advised by Kevin Forbes that there should be some sort of conclusion by 10th May (it has been under consideration and > review now for a month). My second query is however directed at midwives currently working in the public hospital system. I intend to use water for pain relief during my labour - shower or bath. The policy at RWH is currently that women cannot labour in the baths (let alone give birth). I am aware that we have the right to refuse any treatments even if it is hospital policy eg. initial monitoring on admission. However this is refusal of a preferred treatment. In the circumstance I am considering it is the opposite situation, ie. utilising a non preferred treatment. How do hospital staff react if a woman  and her support team take action to run a bath for the woman and to assist her to enter the bath when hospital staff are not asked to assist? (It is assumed that due to policy a request for assistance would be refused). Your opinion / examples would be appreciated. Debby Miller. > Interested Mum and a bit of an advocate. Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: Click Here -- This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics. Visit to subscribe or unsubscribe.