Placenta anyone?

My maternity clinical rotation has officially ended. We got to examine a placenta which is really interesting. I had seen them before but never been able to get hands-on. It's a lot more sturdy than I had originally thought. Plus it's really cool to see where the baby grew, how it attached to the mom, etc.

I also realized that I've never had that much blood on my (gloved) hands before. Blood can be taboo -- indicating sickness, or disease -- but in the case of birth, (some) blood loss is normal. It somehow feels very wrong to have someone else's blood on your hands. I suppose since I will be catching babies for a living, I must get used to this new phenomenon. But not too much blood.

This week is packed full of exams before Spring Break. Tomorrow is ATI (a practice NCLEX) for maternity. Thursday is my pharmacology test. Friday is the maternity midterm. This week couldn't have come at a worse time. Today is mine & Beloved's 3 year anniversary and I'm stuck studying instead of enjoying a romantic day off with my beautiful girlfriend. It's alright though, she's fast asleep anyways.

I've committed myself to doing a birth this month so I'm not traveling during the break. It will be my first birth attended by midwives. I'm excited. I'm still processing my last doula birth. The parents were committed to a natural labor and birth. They did everything right and despite all we did...baby was born by emergency c-section. It was the first time I have seen birth just not work. Although it was disappointing that it ended in a c-section, it really did affirm to me the benefit this surgery can be when used appropriately. And please take my word that I have seen (in my short time in my maternity rotation), very unnecessary, poorly justified, almost malpractice c-sections. Contracted pelvis determined by clinical "pelvimetry" without a trial of labor. Sigh. That's another post entirely.

Another experience has really been bothering me. A classmate of mine was helping a woman who was getting ready to push. My classmate was holding her leg. The OB was quite temperamental and did not particularly like the way the classmate was holding the leg. So he swatted at the student. Repeatedly. In other words, this OB slapped the student, my classmate. Upon recounting the situation, my classmate was in tears. She has been so upset by the situation. I know it's not my battle to fight but I would think there would be greater recourse on a physician for assaulting a student but there hasn't been. I don't think it's ever acceptable for physical violence. But this situation has been continuing to bother me. I had never thought I could potentially be assaulted by a coworker and it would be shrugged off so simply. If the situation had been reversed...a student slapping/swatting an OB -- there would be hell to pay, perhaps even an expulsion. It also bothers me because it's a man hitting a woman. It was an unfortunate manifestation of an intersection of several power discrepancies.