Midwife Mondays 83: Breech presentation, a caseload appointment & more postnatal care!

So, another week has past by in a complete blur…

Honestly, I am really feeling it at the moment – they aren’t kidding when they say that Second Year is tough! It’s not even that I’m particularly stressed from my workload, I think it’s just a culmination of the run up to our Public Health essay recently, being on this placement which I’m not finding too great, and knowing that we’ve got our OSCEs in less than a month – it’s all just a little bit overwhelming and anxiety-ridden at the moment.

Anyway, enough moping, what have I actually been up to this week?

This week has been a varied one – we had a day in uni, learning about breech presentation, which is the final possible topic for our emergency OSCEs at the end of next month (so now I need to swot up on that!) We covered the theory and then went onto the practicalities of managing it and delivering a breech baby (or rather, keeping your HANDS OFF and letting the mother deliver it without intervention unless really needed!)

I also had an appointment with one of my ladies on my caseload – 34 weeks now so it’s all getting a bit closer! She is pulling together her hospital bag at the moment so I’m thinking about pulling together mine (because if she calls at 4am saying she is on her way in to the hospital, I’ve gotta have a bag to grab and go!) – nearer the time I’ll put out a post on what is in my Student Midwife hospital bag if you guys think that would be interesting (comment below if you do, or if you’ve got anything else you’d like to see on here!)

I also had two shifts on the postnatal ward, including a long day yesterday (Sunday shifts are an absolute killer!) The sunshine has been a huge factor this week, and the ward has been almost unbearably hot, but we powered through.
I find the environment on the postnatal ward a tricky one to describe – it’s a kind of organised chaos I think… Some people thrive in that environment, and others don’t – I guess it’s a bit like marmite!
I know how lucky I am to be in a position where I am on this amazing course, and I don’t begrudge that for a minute, but honestly, I can’t wait for this particular placement to be done – I’m ready for a new challenge! Only a few shifts left now so I’m pushing through!

This week coming is a busy one, with a day in uni and time back on the postnatal ward, as well as getting my grading done for this placement – eek – and then we’ve got friends coming up for the weekend ahead of M’s birthday on Monday. No rest for the wicked eh?!

Have a good week!

Image by Sergey Zolkin

To read last week’s Midwife Mondays post, click here: