whitewriter | Chalk and Cheese shifts at SSH

The chalk: 30th July Friday AM

I'd skipped out of taking shifts at SSH whilst I took sick leave from MISH and I'd been feeling better....

right when they decided due to SSH being in an unlucky local government area (LGA) - which we term "hotspots", all women were to be treated as presumptive COVID- positive (unless proven otherwise with a PCR undertaken within the previous 72 hours).

I felt a little like a royal idiot turning up to work at almost, the worst time possible.

The switch from surgical mask to N95 had been undertaken during the previous nightshift, as was mandatory goggles or face shields- which I hadn't used ever before but now can attest that it gives even more of an claustrophobic feeling.

The PPE alone is enough to give PTSD, especially the fear of drinking water (you really can't) because it's doffing the PPE where your at greatest risk of getting sick - and then every time you doff you need to be in an orange zone area- and before going back in - re-put it alllll back on.

And if your like me, and wanting to drink every 2nd hour ...

So that Friday I was so busy. They put me in MAC (usually my favourite zone) but as the incharge put it "thats the most stressful place of the day" because all the women that were coming in would be covid unknown: therefore presumed potentially positive - so all had to be swabbed, all had to be isolated, we had to wear full PPE with each. -- So the real "MAC" (which is an open area with 8 beds curtained off into 8 spaces) was closed for only covid neg women (had a covid neg swab within 3 days of presenting) -- which at this stage due to such a sudden change in rules, was no woman.

At first I confusingly thought yay! Mac is for neg people only... then realised, no one is neg...

by which stage i'd already said "I don't mind going to MAC" and the incharge was like yeah I agree your from an area that has a lot of PPE (ICU) so actually you'd be good there.

So my day mostly consisted of working with a prinip who after feeling pains at 07:00 phoned once, was advised to stay home (they'd just started) and then 2 hours later, phoned back because ??? (can't cope I suppose) so she was invited in and I now had to assess her.

First baby.

So we did a quick CTG (for absolutely no reason other than litigation, kid you not -- mostly because if she's here this early in the labour game she's probably going to score some endone and in 4 hours be sent home and you don't want to send someone home with a crap CTG) - and. VE where I swear, I barely touched the os - I determined it was closed- maybe half a cm but she just clamped down so hard on my hand with her vagina that I just couldn't get any further in with my stubby fingers (legit, midwife's problems).

Which is fine, it's literally. 2 hours. First baby.

Anyhow. She's NESB, gets on the phone to some aunt in Iran who apparently tells her, she should have a c-section (on what basis I have no idea) I'm about to offer endone, and now she wants an interpreter. I agree that would be a good idea. 45 minutes later and 3 phone calls I manage to find one.

She's still contracting 1-2:10, we've given her paracetamol.
Husband is waiting outside-- he's not allowed in due to covid rules (poor Dads, seriously).
But he's on the phone during the phone interpreting : so we have me, the woman, the hubby on the phone and the interpreter on the phone all talking about what's happening, what's normal, what the endone is for etc.

Phone call ends. She wants the endone but she wants to see Hubby first. So I discuss briefly with some seniors sending her on a "walk downstairs" to see Hubby as that skates around the rules.

She's in Early labour, there's tonnes of time to go. Going for a walk, is heaps better than being stuck in a bed.

So I send her off. She seems reluctant to get up really but walks fine.

Anyhow. She comes back.

Before I can get her the endone I've got to do a 2nd VE. Afterall, the doc is gonna wanna know the result before she charts it.

Remember, I hate VEs.

This time, she clamps down harder than ever and I barely get my hand halfway in.

After what felt like 5 minutes of trying (which was probably more like 2 mins) I gave up trying to assault this womans vagina to figure out what she was and told her I'd talk to my senior and get back to her-- but I also explained I couldn't get in far enough to feel where she was at either.

In anycase, by this time it was 13:00 and I handed her over to the Pm staff and the junior doctor - since I asked the senior doctor: would you prescribe some endone for her to get her through this period? and the senior turned to the junior: would you go and review this woman and see what you think?

And that's how I passed the buck on that one.

Due to the N95 mask and being rather busy that day, I went home dehydrated and headache.

It was shite.

The next shift: Sunday- The cheese shift.
Once again I had to don the N95 mask and goggles.

This time, I remembered to wear contact lenses (incidentally, I had panic bought contacts in 2020 for fear I'd have to wear goggles back then, but we never got to that stage.)

So the goggles were 20% more comfortable compared to the chalk shift.

I also, didn't have a single woman to take care of.

There was one woman in labour.

And so I checked all the trolleys,
And tidied the unit.
I did my yearly BLS assessment (basic life support).

And did some HETI (online education module thing).
And before I knew it was lunch time.
- then home time.

The educator that was borrowed from MSH was leaving (sadly)
and the kids (junior midwives) were talking in the lunch corner about the rumours that were said about her (unkind words) and how they thought this was due to a poor introduction. That they enjoyed having her and it was a shame she wasn't there for longer.

Especially since one of the main educators was now on mat leave.

Then had a heart to heart with one of the midwives pregnant with her 3rd kid about pregnancy. She's such a sweetheart

and before I knew it, after being paid 1.75x standard hourly rate for an 8th yr RM for 7.5 hours,

I went home.

I've been meaning to post this for 2 weeks. But every time I find time to write it ends up being 17:00 and that's my worst time of the day.