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| The front verandah of the beautiful federation home that is The Birth House |
I started working with Bron in October, before I graduated. As a part of the structure of my job that we had agreed upon, I would be doing 6 hours a week of administration, helping Bron with the running of her business and learning the behind the scenes of being a private midwife. I was excited about this, because I knew it was setting me up for my future as a private midwife, and that I was lucky to have someone who had been doing it for years to learn from, rather than starting from scratch myself and making lots of mistakes. So, I started my admin hours straight away, started meeting Bron's clients as they came and went from the clinic while I was there, and waited for my registration to come through - hopefully before the baby that was due on Christmas Eve came.
I met the woman who was due at her 36 week birth plan appointment, as Bron and I had discussed I would, and I was introduced to her as the second midwife for her birth. We discussed her wishes for her birth, and she had a few requests for her birth which deviated from standard care. We discussed reasons for and against, provided her with evidence relating to her decisions, discussed when risk factors might present themselves which would suggest deviating from her choices, and gave her time to process the information and come to a decision. When we left the appointment, suspecting that I would find it a massive transition moving from hospital policy to a practice of informed consent led by the woman, Bron asked me how I felt about this. I was surprised to find that I was actually totally comfortable with the woman's decision. I asked Bron some questions about how we document her decisions to cover ourselves legally, and then said "I trust the process. I trust birth. I trust that the woman is making the decisions she feels are best for herself and her baby, and that she is taking ownership of her body and her birth in her decision-making. I trust that we have given her the information to make an informed decision, and I trust you. I trust that we will document her decision correctly to cover ourselves legally, and I trust that I will be well supported by you in her birth, and that if there are any indications that we should divert back to standard care, we will pick up on them in a timely manner, and have those discussions with her." Every word of it was true. I trusted birth. I trusted Bron, and I felt so well supported in practice by her, that I felt comfortable with honouring this woman's wishes for non-standard care. In fact, I felt like that was exactly why I was working in this model of care.
My registration came through late December and a couple of nights later I got my first midnight call out! The woman worked beautifully with her partner in her birth, calling us to come late in the piece, and being 45 minutes away, I missed it entirely! I got there in time to watch her have her first breastfeed and birth the placenta. I checked the placenta, cleaned up the birth space a bit, tucked the new family into bed and drove home. I was back in bed before the sun came up, smiling ear to ear.
Over the following weeks, I attended a few more births - all of them beautiful, natural and calm. Bron and I started to feel more in sync working together. I worked with another private midwife in the area, Libby, a bit and I really enjoy seeing the similarities and differences in her and Bron's practice. I feel really at ease working with both of them, and I commented to them both one morning after a team meeting that I feel like I'm exactly where I'm meant to be. They both gave me beautiful feedback about my presence at a birth and my way of working. To begin with, I didn't really feel like a "real" midwife. I sort of still felt like a student, but I'm slowly gaining confidence in my practice and at least I've stopped having to correct my signature from SM to RM on documentation. I drove up to the Gold Coast for a birth at 2am one night, and was coming home just as the sun rose. It was so beautiful and peaceful. I was totally in awe of my own life! I wrote this on facebook later that morning:
I love waking up in the middle of the night to a phone call, rushing to the car and driving through the still of the night, the only car on the road, to a birth. I love pulling into the street to see the lone house with lights on; thinking that's the one! And being present when new life enters the world. Sitting quietly in the corner of the room, writing notes and observing the woman and her support people as they work together to bring baby down and out. Anticipating needs and providing reassurance and encouragement. Seeing a family grow in an instant, as they meet the baby, and then tucking them up into their own bed to sleep, before heading back home to my own. I watch the sun rise from the road, and climb back into bed to sleep as the rest of the world wakes, feeling contented.
Everything felt right in those first few weeks of working in this way. I was in a blissful, private midwife, normal birth bubble. Everything about it still feels right 3 months in, and I'm really appreciative of the gentle start I've had to life as a registered midwife thanks to the support of Bron and Libby. Taking the road less travelled isn't straightforward though. I've come across a few challenges, which I'll discuss in my next post.
Part 3 can be found here!
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