Week 38: Ante-natal continues
Week 2 of 4 on the ante-natal classes, and what's been in store this week?
Last week we had early labour, so this week we're prepared for the second and third stages. I'm getting visions of one of Dave's gory horror flicks, so how did it compare? Well, I'll start off with the same questions as last time.
What did we expect?
- The gentle break-in of last week to take a nasty turn
- The video to have an 18 BBFC certificate
What did we learn?
- Diginity is left at the front door of the hospital, and not necessarily collected on the way back out. To be fair this was known already, just confirmed today.
- Try as I might last week to bring humour to the approach, it's not delaying the inevitable
- Drugs are not objects of humour. Oh how I laughed writing that.
- The Edinburgh (that's the capital city of Scotland Royal Infirmary's pay stations for TV, internet & phone access takes coins and English notes only. No credit cards, no Scottish notes.
- Every baby is born with a hole in the heart. I never knew this, but the cord goes directly into the heart, and it takes a couple of days for that to close up, hence poor circulation and blue hands & feet.
What was informative?
- Moving on from stage 1 to stages 2 and 3
- Learning about the 4 different types of stage 3 - 2 drugs, physiological or manual delivery
- Seeing how some mums-to-be think "meconium" is associated with stage 1 of labour. And not first-timers either. Meconium being baby's first bowel movement - the composition of which isn't for this post
- Seeing new words - having certain terms pocketed into the three stages, having some new ones in there for new discussion as well as familiar ones for re-cap
What was a waste of time?
- Not so much a waste of time, but something in need of re-working. The video produced by the NHS trust doesn't tie in with the classes. If the classes follow the same format week by week across the trust's area the video should match it in terms of topic flow.
What was missing?
- The promise of a hospital tour. Still as unsure as I was last week about the "tour" being a video. I have apprehensions about a few things, and not knowing the inside of the hospital is one of them. I just hope the staff are OK with dads who
- have no idea what they are doing
- have no idea where they are going
- are stressed to the max and, more importantly, showing it
I'll be missing next week's so I hope the Fat Lady keeps us up to speed on what's happened. Saying that, the challenge is to attend the next two ante-natal classes now she's offically "full term"!
Comments
Our hospital tour was massively disappointing. I was expecting something more......... medieval.
And the bit about 'leaving your dignity at the front door' - that's really just for the mums. Not an excuse for the dads to get naked and run up and down the corridors.
Didnt Blainy dial a pizza?
Posted by: Dave Morrow | August 9, 2006 4:14 PM
Doesn't accept Scottish money? English purchased system no doubt. The word planning missing from any of these people's vocabulary?
What are they doing in this day and age with videos? How about interactive e-learning courses online? Flash presentations from the viewpoint of the baby - now there's a corker!
Posted by: Richard Brunton | August 9, 2006 6:54 PM
I thought the whole pizza thing was an urban myth. But now I've heard it from more than one source it must be true.
What do you mean, no nakedness? With all those nurses about ;-]
Yeah, bugger about the pay-points. Hadn't planned in a stop-off at a NatWest or HSBC machine on the way in just to pay for the TV. Need to re-plan my route.
Posted by: Lee ? | August 9, 2006 6:59 PM