I am currently in nursing school and considering what I would like to do in the future. I'm considering a lot of things and I know things might change as I get farther along In nursing school.
I am very passionate about pregnancy and babies. I believe pregancy and birth should be seen as incredible, not a disease. I believe that women's bodies know what they are doing and that natural childbirth should be encouraged whenever possible. I want to work with pregnant women and newborns, especially low income and young mothers, but I'm not only interested in the pregnancy and delivery part. I would love to get involved with breastfeeding promotion/support and health promotion after the baby is born but I'm not sure if that is something a CNM would be involved with.
Im concerned about the lack of work/family balance because I want children of my own and I don't want a nanny to raise them. Are there any jobs a CNM could do part time for a few years? Also, are CNMs involved with abortions or artificial family planning usually? I'm not willing to participate in or advocate for abortions or artificial family planning.
I am also doing research online and trying to find a midwife to shadow but I would love to get some information from the knowledgeable people on here.
Jj1994 I feel the same way... I would be happy to TREAT all patients, without regards of how the conception happened. I don't understand how any midwife can agree with abortions when the whole job is caring for woman AND BABY and I would never terminate the baby. However, if any woman was in need of emergency care, of course I'd provide it. Midwifery shouldn't be about do I want to do abortions or do I want to help couples conceive... Midwifery is about counseling pregnant woman and helping them and the baby throughout the pregnancy. They want to abort- go to someone who is comfortable doing it. I personally agree with ivf and clomid and would readily prescribe it if I felt necessary. But I'm not comfortable doing things like ivf for non traditional couples, which isn't even applicable cuZ midwives don't do ivf. They care for the already conceived fetus.
Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.
If a mom would die if she carried her baby or G-d forbid needed chemotherapy and couldn't wait till after the fetus was viable, I would be okay terminated the pregnancy. But I would NEVER terminate someone's pregnancy because they didn't want it. I feel like that's the whole difference between doctors and midwives, that a midwife deals with the whole patient and patient needs, and not solely on a medical standpoint.
Why on earth would you think that one of the differences between physicians and midwives is that a physician would terminate an unwanted pregnancy but a midwife would not? Yes, you are totally way off base. Accepting and understanding that for some women, abortion IS the best option for the "whole patient" is EXACTLY what midwifery care is all about.
Midwifery shouldn't be about do I want to do abortions or do I want to help couples conceive... Midwifery is about counseling pregnant woman and helping them and the baby throughout the pregnancy.
This is simply untrue. Midwifery, as stated by the ACNM, is about caring for women throughout their lifespan--adolescent health, well woman GYN, pre-conception, pregnancy, labor, birth, postpartum, menopause, general primary care, etc. Midwives have a wider scope of practice and a broader range of skills than most people realize. Is it common for a midwife to work solely in reproductive endocrinology, or to perform abortions? No. So if you are concerned about these being common aspects of the average job of a midwife, relax. But midwives don't solely care for pregnant women---you would be wise to educate yourself further. Once again, I encourage you to peruse American College of Nurse-Midwives.
Bottom line: there should be no space for anyone working in women's health who can't view every woman as worthy of the highest quality, nonjudgmental care.
Came out wrong... Obviously that isn't the difference there is many Drs who wouldn't do it... I would never pull the plug on a patient either, and if it was required I would ask a different nurse to step in... There are certain medical procedures I'm not comfortable doing
Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.
I'm not kidding at all. I'm not going to help create a child knowing it will be in a situation that is less than ideal..
First of all, "help create a child"? Unless you are the father, you are not helping to create anything.
Secondly, I would be willing to be that EVERY child is in a situation that is less than ideal.
Your attitude towards disadvantaged women and what they do (and do NOT, as the case may be) have the right to, is absolutely appalling. Elitist attitudes like this have NO business in women's health.
Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.
Abortion for willy nilly reasons yes, other than that? .
You know what? I still provide compassionate, nonjudgmental care for women who have abortion for willy nilly reasons. I counsel them on the health implications to using abortion as birth control, and I am concerned for her physical and reproductive health, but beyond that - it's her choice to make, it's a legal option, and NAPALM - Not All People Are Like Me.
You know what? I still provide compassionate, nonjudgmental care for women who have abortion for willy nilly reasons. I counsel them on the health implications to using abortion as birth control, and I am concerned for her physical and reproductive health, but beyond that - it's her choice to make, it's a legal option, and NAPALM - Not All People Are Like Me.
What's your point in quoting me? Did I ever say I wouldn't care for them equally? I said I'm uncomfortable with abortions for willy nilly reasons. That doesn't mean I wouldn't care for her in an unbiased way. Uncomfortable with willy nilly abortions, not uncomfortable with the person having it, I almost had one, happened naturally unfortunately, but I've been in their shoes.
You know what? I still provide compassionate, nonjudgmental care for women who have abortion for willy nilly reasons. I counsel them on the health implications to using abortion as birth control, and I am concerned for her physical and reproductive health, but beyond that - it's her choice to make, it's a legal option, and NAPALM - Not All People Are Like Me.
Just TODAY I counseled a woman on abortion for what I guess would be called "willy nilly" reasons. The ONLY reason I am interested in a woman's reason for seeking an abortion is so that I can better counsel her and provider her with the support and services she needs, and to correct any misinformation that she might have.
Based solely on maternal M&M, the safest method of birth control is to use condoms with TAB as a backup when needed. Of course there are a gazillion reasons (financial, psychosocial, access etc) why this is actually NOT the ideal method of contracepting. LARC for everyone!!! lol. But anyway, I'm just saying- pregnancy is risky, and only the woman in question gets to decide if she wants to take the risk of carrying a pregnancy to term.
Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.
I quoted you because I was responding to what you wrote.
It's definitely a paradigm shift to go from "Yeah, I"m pro-choice, but only X, Y, and Z circumstances, otherwise I don't agree with your choice" (not saying that's what you do) to be able to say "I will support a woman's choice to have an abortion in ANY situation and ANY circumstance, because that is her right and her choice." I've always been pro-choice my entire adult live, but it's only been in the last several years that I have become pro-choice to the point that there is NO internal judgment on if she's had abortions in the past, or the circumstances of her behavior or social situation.
Abortion needs to remain legal, and more importantly, NON-STIGMATIZED for EVERY woman, regardless if she's crack-addicted prostitute who has had 4 previous abortions, or if she's a 15-year old virgin who was raped.
Mariposa, I'm not ranting at you. I'm just ranting, and your words simply are what sparked my train of thought and verbal diarrhea.
I quoted you because I was responding to what you wrote.
It's definitely a paradigm shift to go from "Yeah, I"m pro-choice, but only X, Y, and Z circumstances, otherwise I don't agree with your choice" (not saying that's what you do) to be able to say "I will support a woman's choice to have an abortion in ANY situation and ANY circumstance, because that is her right and her choice." I've always been pro-choice my entire adult live, but it's only been in the last several years that I have become pro-choice to the point that there is NO internal judgment on if she's had abortions in the past, or the circumstances of her behavior or social situation.
Abortion needs to remain legal, and more importantly, NON-STIGMATIZED for EVERY woman, regardless if she's crack-addicted prostitute who has had 4 previous abortions, or if she's a 15-year old virgin who was raped.
Mariposa, I'm not ranting at you. I'm just ranting, and your words simply are what sparked my train of thought and verbal diarrhea.
This whole thread had me fighting back against black and white train of thought. The one who should spark your train of thought is the person who claims not ever wanting to help someone conceive because she knows the child would be in a subpar family.
Luckyyou, BSN, RN
467 Posts
oh nevermind...