Catch up

So it's been a while since I have posted. Let's play catch-up.

We have a new midwife - YAHHHHHHH!!!!! But she doesn't start until July - BOOOOOO! She doesn't finish school until May and will be moving here from somewhere East Coast at the end of June. I just have to be patient for a little longer...just a little longer....oosahhhh.

In the meantime, April has slowed down a little for me. March was crazy busy. I had the highest numbers again...but they were higher than what I had been doing previously. In fact, it was more like the old days before we went back to a midwifery service. I'm totally ok with kicking back this month and letting others do the work :) It also helps that we have a midwife helping us out part-time in the office right now. She'll also do a little call once she gets credentialed at the hospital.

I was at the hospital a few nights ago for a really nice birth. However I was a little irked by one of the nurses, whom I normally never have a problem with. The hospital's idea of intermittent monitoring is 20 minutes of strip out of every hour. What I order is before, during, and after a contraction every 30 minutes during active labor and transition. This nurse said to me (they were very busy this particular night) "Well, if she had come in earlier when it was crazy, that wouldn't have been happening". This implied to me that what I had ordered was too labor intensive or time-consuming. But when you think about it....we are talkin' maybe 4-5 minutes of auscultation out of an hour...I would think that would be much better for the labor nurse? Unless of course just being on the monitor continuously would be more convinient (sp) for everyone? Oh, except my laboring mom who is birth naturally....but she's not the top priority anyway. Jeez. I basically just said that I would then have done the monitoring if the nurse assigned to my patient was just too damn busy to do it. I realize I am asking a lot...you know, being at the bedside from time to time. Whatever did nurses do before monitors came along. Oh wait...I know...bedside nursing and one-on-one care! Wow, what a freakin' concept.

Now I understand that it's not always the nurses' fault. I understand all the factors that come into play (2 to 1 ratio on L&D, higher rsik patients, lack of staffing, etc). But there are times when nurses have the time to be there with patients...and they don't. None of them. Very little labor support happens....other than "ok honey, breathe". The nurses where I catch babies are decent - they are supportive and there are some true gems there, but I get so frustrated sometimes.

Ok, so that really evolved into a tangent.

Easter was nice. We did the usual - kids found eggs in the morning, family came over for a fabulous feast cooked by my husband in the afternoon. Kids ate candy for breakfast, etc. Very nice weekend. My mom and I went shopping the day before to get clothes for her wedding - other than going all over the place to find certain items it went well. We are mostly decked out for the wedding. I hope everyone had a fab Easter :)

This weekend has been pretty laid back, which was fine with me. After all, here's my last four weekends....

#1 San Diego trip
#2 Mexico trip
#3 On call
#4 Easter weekend with shopping and family, etc

So this weekend I have been doing a little of this, a little of that, and not much of anything.

Today I turned on the air conditioning....it's 93 degrees outside - ack! I think next weekend, we will start swimming - woohoo!