Wow, my head is spinning
After a quick shower-brush-hair-out-the-door this morning, we had a quick continental breakfast and then settled in for the first presentation of the day. The presenter was disjointed and hugely disorganized because she had decided to change her presentation this morning! To matters worse, she went over her time by half an hour. One of my SK midwives was extra sleepy from a very late night and told me I would have to pinch her if she started snoring. Our 'carrot' was a presentation by one of my faves, Dr. Andrew Kotaska, an Ob from Yellowknife. I heard him speak for the first time in Dawson Creek in April. Today, he was speaking on "Autonomy vs Beneficience". He's a great speaker, his is very midwife/homebirth friendly, and calls himself a midwife in a doctor's coat. It's so refreshing to have an Ob who is not afraid of breech birth, who supports women and midwives, who isn't c-section crazy, and well, I could go on and on.
Later in the morning, there was a panel discussion on the safety of home birth, with one of our Saskatchewan Obs giving his perspective. As he introduced himself he said, "It's a pleasure to be here...I think. You haven't reacted to what I've had to say yet." lol
During lunch, I was introduced to the registrar for our provincial College of Midwives (Transitional Council). I had spoken with her via telephone and email but never met her in person. Her first question to me was, "Are you an official UCN student now?" I told her I would probably be enrolled in UCN early in the New Year. She was standing with two of our province's midwives and I mentioned how much I am looking forward to doing clinical in my own province! The midwives and I were laughing about how I would plant myself on their doorsteps until they took me to clinic and the registrar said, "Just be sure to come and see ME first!" so that I can become an official student member of the SCM. In a very lighthearted way, I replied, "Ohhh yes, I know. I've been reading this playbook for 7 years. I know the rules very well. Hahaha."
After lunch there were several concurrent sessions. The first one I went to was a presentation by an Alberta midwife and a nurse who had done a survey of Alberta midwives to gather information in preparation for the new Alberta midwifery program. They surveyed Alberta midwives twice over the past two years to ask about what their needs are with regard to being preceptors for future midwifery students, etc. There will be one more survey in 2011 to see how the midwifery practices and midwives' needs have changed and then these two women will publish the results 'publicly', outside of Alberta. The new program will be at Mount Royal and they're hopeful it will start in September 2011. Tina and I spoke with the person who has been developing the program and everything she had to say was very positive and exciting. It will be great to have another option for midwifery students in western Canada.
The second presenation that I attended this afternoon about screening criteria for homebirth. Not the most fascinating presenation, but some of it was interesting, and one of the presenters was a male midwifery student from McMaster. Cool.
The third and last concurrent session of the afternoon was...amazing. Jay MacGillivray, an RM from Ontario, works with women who have suffered horrible rape and torture in Conflict Zones and come to Canada, as well as HIV positive birthing women. This midwife....was fascinating, scary, inspiring, and passionate all at once. Many of us stayed through the coffee break to talk to her more after the session ended. I realize, after listening to hear speak, that I am so incredibly ignorant of what is waiting for me out there as a practising midwife; even though I've heard of rape as a tool of war, and other horrific trauma to women in third world, war-torn countries....it's hard for me to imagine how I will serve women like that. I have so much to learn.
Tina and I attended one last session this afternoon, presented by two Ontario midwives in rural practice; Is close proximity to emergency obstetrical services a prerequisite for safety? It was an interesting presentation, but lots of bar graphs and stastics that my tired, over-filled and still somewhat shocked (from the previous presentation) brain had a hard time comprehending.
We left the conference room before the last presenation of the afternoon began, picked up some coke zero on our way up to our room and fired up the laptops. Once I have emptied my brain into LJ, I'll crack open my books and we'll decide later if we'll order pizza or order room service. Tomorrow is another day of brain-cramming inspiration then the scary drive out of Edmonton as I head home. As soon as I get home, I have to work four out of five days - it will be hard to go back to that work after being here. BUT, those four shifts are my LAST four shifts, evah! Woot!
Later in the morning, there was a panel discussion on the safety of home birth, with one of our Saskatchewan Obs giving his perspective. As he introduced himself he said, "It's a pleasure to be here...I think. You haven't reacted to what I've had to say yet." lol
During lunch, I was introduced to the registrar for our provincial College of Midwives (Transitional Council). I had spoken with her via telephone and email but never met her in person. Her first question to me was, "Are you an official UCN student now?" I told her I would probably be enrolled in UCN early in the New Year. She was standing with two of our province's midwives and I mentioned how much I am looking forward to doing clinical in my own province! The midwives and I were laughing about how I would plant myself on their doorsteps until they took me to clinic and the registrar said, "Just be sure to come and see ME first!" so that I can become an official student member of the SCM. In a very lighthearted way, I replied, "Ohhh yes, I know. I've been reading this playbook for 7 years. I know the rules very well. Hahaha."
After lunch there were several concurrent sessions. The first one I went to was a presentation by an Alberta midwife and a nurse who had done a survey of Alberta midwives to gather information in preparation for the new Alberta midwifery program. They surveyed Alberta midwives twice over the past two years to ask about what their needs are with regard to being preceptors for future midwifery students, etc. There will be one more survey in 2011 to see how the midwifery practices and midwives' needs have changed and then these two women will publish the results 'publicly', outside of Alberta. The new program will be at Mount Royal and they're hopeful it will start in September 2011. Tina and I spoke with the person who has been developing the program and everything she had to say was very positive and exciting. It will be great to have another option for midwifery students in western Canada.
The second presenation that I attended this afternoon about screening criteria for homebirth. Not the most fascinating presenation, but some of it was interesting, and one of the presenters was a male midwifery student from McMaster. Cool.
The third and last concurrent session of the afternoon was...amazing. Jay MacGillivray, an RM from Ontario, works with women who have suffered horrible rape and torture in Conflict Zones and come to Canada, as well as HIV positive birthing women. This midwife....was fascinating, scary, inspiring, and passionate all at once. Many of us stayed through the coffee break to talk to her more after the session ended. I realize, after listening to hear speak, that I am so incredibly ignorant of what is waiting for me out there as a practising midwife; even though I've heard of rape as a tool of war, and other horrific trauma to women in third world, war-torn countries....it's hard for me to imagine how I will serve women like that. I have so much to learn.
Tina and I attended one last session this afternoon, presented by two Ontario midwives in rural practice; Is close proximity to emergency obstetrical services a prerequisite for safety? It was an interesting presentation, but lots of bar graphs and stastics that my tired, over-filled and still somewhat shocked (from the previous presentation) brain had a hard time comprehending.
We left the conference room before the last presenation of the afternoon began, picked up some coke zero on our way up to our room and fired up the laptops. Once I have emptied my brain into LJ, I'll crack open my books and we'll decide later if we'll order pizza or order room service. Tomorrow is another day of brain-cramming inspiration then the scary drive out of Edmonton as I head home. As soon as I get home, I have to work four out of five days - it will be hard to go back to that work after being here. BUT, those four shifts are my LAST four shifts, evah! Woot!