A day to remember

Today we were given the opportunity to accompany public health nurses into the homes of moms who had given birth over the last short while. Helen and I were not only eager to see how they were doing and how the system worked here but also how these families lived so.... we were up at 6:00 am to join these ladies only to find out by 10:30 that due to the fact that it was raining...."all bets are off" !! No one goes out when it rains....school attendance is threatened by the rain...why??? Because one might slip and fall. OK so can I use that excuse when it snows in Calgary??? Too funny but entirely serious.
So Helen and I paddled our way back to The Rand Hospital and had an awesome day.
Upon arrival we were given permission to work with a 2nd time mom to manage and support her birth. We conspired with the couple to see how interested they were in bucking the system and keeping their baby with them for bonding and feeding right after birth. They were so interested....cute, cute couple.
We managed to keep the augmentation to a minimum, keep the staff from cutting the cord, babe went straight to Mom's tummy and stayed there, no stitches required after a shoulder dystocia,  Dad cut the cord (though why they insist on him donning sterile gloves to do that is beyond us), baby self latched 10 minutes after birth in delivery room... all unheard of here!!!
We had to battle the nurse who wanted to take baby off of the breast to bath him and then install him in the incubator. The four of us were in cahoots about it... Helen, myself, Mom and Dad and it worked for a time.....baby steps excuse the pun.
An hour after birth baby was finally hijacked by the nurse to go to the incubator to warm up because apparently mom can't do that. She was thoroughly unimpressed with the written and verbal instructions to not formula feed him. The Dad and Aunt tried to see the baby later and were kicked out by the irate nurse....see we make friends so easily !!!
We are making banana bread as a peace offering as we type!

Dedication

As most of you know, Helen and I are good friends so wherever she goes I go ....even if it is a scheduled day off !!!
We called The Rand Hospital today and a woman was in labour so we went in to see if we could help. She was a tiny gal  who was lighter at the end of her pregnancy than she began with....we believe she was malnourished. She lived on one of the neighbouring islands and had been on Grand Bahama for a few weeks awaiting labour. Her husband had flown in this morning to join her.
She gave birth to a small babe as well....just over 4 lbs.

The other day we supported a couple who gave birth to their second baby. Helen asked the Dad if he wanted to cut the cord which really is unheard of here. We ran into him yesterday and he said he is a fisherman and he is going to bring us a lobster tomorrow night....so kind.

There are alot of backwards medical models here however the tenderness and compassion we experience is universal and we are honoured to be part of it thus far.

The Hospital...

 Thought we would share a few pictures of where we work each day.







Believe it or not, this poster is on the door as you enter the obstetrical ward ...for a cost of $475.00 one can have a DNA test done and then go after the biological father for a total of $52.00/month child support.



This is one of 4 labour beds. There are two in each room with only a curtain in between. Since we have been here....a couple Moms have even given birth here because there is only one delivery bed. There is a dodgy fetal monitor that works sporadically at best.

There is ALOT of augmentation of labour and most moms get an IV.

Cytotec is used to induce labour, the safety of which is questionable according to SOGC and Helen's training.

The staff by the way are just excellent and so welcoming to us !!!

3 babies in 6 hours

Today was not dull in any way whatsoever.

• Helen caught the first baby to a multip, walked in fully...all is well
• Helen caught another baby to a mom who was a baby herself....all is well
• Jennifer was bit in the arm by the above mom...all is well
• Helen and Jennifer were treated to a Bahamian Thanksgiving dinner but did not sample the yams with marshmallows, we even snuck 2 plates of food to some new moms on the unit.....all is well
• Helen caught the third baby to a multip who did not make it to the delivery room...all is well

Home, Tired, Satisifed....Goodnight

What a difference a day makes...

We rocked today..have to admit.
After feeling somewhat frustrated about the lack of trust in our skills, Helen took the initiative and gently said...I can do this and did.
Results...began to push side lying....What??? Not done here!!!
              intact perineum....What??? Never here!!!
              babe directly on Mom's chest....What??? No one knew what to do then...bravo Helen
Great run on the beach this evening at low tide.

Even nicer dinner at the neighbours who have their own outdoor pizza oven...simply awesome.

BTW.....I drove today successfully on the "wrong" side of the road!!!

A good day....

Put on the spot..

Woke to a dead battery in the van....great because we seem to be walking disasters the last few days.
Today Helen and I attended a free prenatal clinic where it was obvious I was only there for moral support to Helen.
The nursing staff were wonderful....until...only kidding but..I was put on the spot when asked to give an impromptu education chat on anything for 15 minutes to all the lovely ladies (and a few men)...about 70 people (gulp) in the waiting room !! Really...ok, why not....I yammered on for almost 90 minutes..it was very fun and even the staff were taking my animated picture.
Helen saw many ladies in the examination room and was shocked by the amount of obesity she witnessed...and we thought only their dialect was tricky.
We did manage to find a coffee shop where we treated ourselves to an Americano....not Starbucks though.
Tonight we met a few pregnant ladies who we will be working with privately.

Trials and Tribulations...Day One

We began our working adventure today and that it was....We arrived at the hospital at 8:00am to meet up with Sister Rolle who we were scheduled to meet. We found out at 8:45 that she was off sick so we luckily we introduced to many other wonderful nurses who took us under their wing and showed us around. Helen spent most of the day reading practice protocols and taking notes on how they manage things here re medications etc. She is hoping to get to do some more hands on care in the next couple of days but planned to observe initially.
A teenage first time Mom was in labour so I was able to accompany her all day and as we were just about to leave....she went fully and we were able to attend the birth of her son.....who was told by the way that she was having a girl.
Sparing the details, although rewarding in many ways, things were so backwards compared to what we experience in Calgary. We have our work cut out for us to say the least. There is a lot of pregnancy induced hypertension here, most likely a result of poor diet and obesity. We arrived this morning just after a mother had delivered by C/S after having 5 eclamptic seizures during the night! The laboring women are not given the freedom of movement and food/drink etc that we are used to seeing in Canada so that was difficult for us to witness. The nurses, midwives and doctors are kind to them but the protocols are not what we are used to and the women are woefully uneducated and uninformed during the process...
We arrived back home at 7:00 pm....tired and full of hope. No pics today - it didn't seem appropriate...

Pictures from paradise

Apologies in advance to any Calgarians who may read this, in fact to anyone who is not here! We have had an amazing couple of days introduction to life on Turtle Reef where we are staying with the delightful Mary and Basil. Mary has kept us very busy getting to know the island and seems bent on showing us both a good time before we start volunteering tomorrow.

On our first full day here we were invited to lunch down the beach by some friends of Mary and Basil, a lovely retired German couple who live about 2 miles down the beach from where we are. We had a lovely time getting to know them and then walked back to Mary's home along the beach at low tide. It was completely spectacular and we stopped many times to pinch ourselves and consider how lucky we were to not be in the frozen tundra that Calgary has become. Here are a few pics to ogle over...

Jen's starfish

Helen's starfish and glorious beach in the background

This is what the beach looks like at low tide - beautiful but hard on the feet!

Our lunch hosts Karl and Eva - lovely retired German couple

Our evening was spent at a moonlight jazz fundraising event in a place called Garden of the Groves. The event was to raise funds for the nursery and we were treated to live jazz, appetizers and coconut rum drinks that matched Helen's blue-green dress!

On Saturday we were joined by Mary's friend Sonya and we loaded up the truck with kayaks and spent the day snorkelling and kayaking. Again - completely spectacular! We first stopped at a beach with a "blue hole" that we were able to snorkel around. It is formed when the roof of an underground cave collapses and there are thousands of tropical fish and reef formations around it. Then we went on to the very end of the island where we put in and kayaked for a few hours. Helen saw a stingray and we all saw lots of bonefish that were hiding in the shallows. We kayaked around an exclusive fishing retreat and then anchored on a reef where we snorkelled for an hour or so. Helen got to swim with another stingray (while keeping a respectable distance!) and we saw all kinds of gorgeous fish - the colours were so vivid. There were lion fish (apparently an invasive species here), parrot fish, lobsters, crabs, bright blue and yellow fish, anemones galore... we could have stayed there all day but the light was fading so we headed back. As we packed up a boat came to shore captained by a friend of Mary's who had been fishing for the day and he decided to give us a huge Martin snapper which we cooked up for dinner!

Snorkelling at the blue hole

The take out bar

We stopped at this little bar to buy some local beers for the drive home - gotta love the relaxed "Island attitude", and were treated to this sunset on the way home... no complaints from us!

Sunset on night #2

Part Two....Arrived

All is well in Freeport....no really it is....honestly!!!
We left the -20 degrees in Calgary and the threat of snow in Toronto to a balmy 26 ...maybe more.
Upon arrival, we sailed through immigration and customs. I think the customs agent thought Helen was a "real" doctor as she quizzed her about a friends inner ear problems....let me tell you even I said intelligent things!!!
We went to the local grocery store....then were slapped with a power outage....good thing we are white so we could see each other in the parking lot! Our host Mary and her husband Basil are SO lovely :) We have certainly found a wonderful friend and she is very excited that we are here to model a different style of care. Mary has 3 dogs and a crazy parrot called Webster who talks and imitates the phone, the appliances and likes to forage in the garbage when he is let out of his cage!

We had a very quick tour of the hospital because Mary had to drop off a breast pump for a new mom. It is a one story affair and quite primitive, though the staff are lovely. We get to have a proper tour/orientation with one of the nurses on Monday. There are 2 labor rooms, each with 2 beds and a flimsy curtain between them. Privacy is not a priority, or maybe it is just not possible given the resources here. There is one small delivery room which the moms are moved to when they are close to delivery. It is not much bigger than the labor room and they get to lie flat on their backs until birth because that is the most convenient for the delivery staff... hopefully we can make a difference in this department at the very least.

Tomorrow we get to explore our surroundings and Mary is taking us to a fund-raising jazz event for the infant nursery, at which she promises to introduce us to lots of people. Pics to follow.

Part One

We left the frozen Cowtown and thanks Heather for the lift to the airport through the crazy traffic. I was stressed and Helen could have walked faster for most of the ride....this we will not miss at all.
We were treated like royalty on the airplane....thanks honey.
We arrived safely in Toronto and had a nice dinner with my parents.
Heading to Bahamas tomorrow....much more to follow.

A thousand thank you's!

We are overflowing with pride as we pack all of the supplies donated by our wonderful friends and family.
We have collected:
desk blood pressure monitor
3 dopplers
baby shampoos and lotions
breast pump
2 pulse oximeters
5 digital thermometers
4 boxes of probe covers
4 infant stethoscopes
4 adult stethoscopes
dvd player
6 disposable cameras for bereavement kits
bag of stuffed animals for the bereavement kits
5 babycare/safety dvds
pack of diapers
box of Q Tips
blood pressure cuff and stethoscope set
4 fetoscopes
1 pinard horn (low tech way to listen to baby's heart in utero
4 boxes of gloves
bag of medications
birthing magazines
Bastyr loot for the nurses

We are sure that they will be really happy to receive these items
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you ....

2 sleeps!

Wow - it's hard to believe we are now this close to departing for our adventure. We are SO excited to be almost on our way to this incredible experience. Bags are getting packed, final supplies are rolling in and we are preparing our families to do without us for the next month. Tonight we are getting together to assemble the HUGE pile of medical supplies that we are donating with the help of our supporters. There will be at least 1 large suitcase full of goodies, maybe 2 depending on how well we pack. I must say that the timing re the weather seems to be working especially in our favour - tonight the snow is coming to Calgary and the cold we have avoided so far is here to stay for at least the next 2 weeks. Meanwhile in Freeport the forecast for this week is 29 Celsius and sunny every day... sorry folks but it won't be all fun and games for us. Our host Mary has organized some acclimatization activities for us for the next few days and then we will officially start at the hospital in Freeport on Monday. We are preparing ourselves to see some situations that will be very difficult but we are confident that together we will be able to offer the women a more compassionate and empowering birth experience than they would have without us. We go there to offer the best of ourselves and hope that it will make a difference...

Many steps forward and a few back...

Yes we are now officially counting sleeps....7 to go. It has been a busy time for Helen and I as we get prepared for this fabulous opportunity.

We are overwhelmed with the generosity of our friends and family as we have raised over $1500.00 in a few short weeks. We have been successful in purchasing everything on the “wish list” and more which delights us as we are able to hand over all the needed supplies….most of which we take for granted in our privileged lives so a huge thank you to everyone.

There have been rumblings from our host in The Bahamas that they wish to have some media attention brought to us when we arrive and we believe this is because this is the first time that someone has offered the services that we can so naturally provide….We do realize that we may have some big shoes to fill and very much look forward to this opportunity to educate ourselves.

We love to give and that is why we have chosen this field. I for one feel blessed that I have met so many wonderful people along the way and are able to witness a woman become a mother and a man become a father. I applaud my good friend Helen who has taken her passion one step further and is a few months away from becoming a midwife.

Good Karma/Bad Karma….this past week however, someone took it upon themselves to empty out my bank account…fortunately, my bank is replacing all the money but it does leave a sour taste about the motives of some individuals!!

I am teaching the DONA Birth Doula Training course this weekend and Helen has a few births she is still on call for then our lives will be changing in so many ways….at least for awhile.

Have tickets, will travel!

So our trip is really starting to come together now. This week we booked our flights from Toronto direct to Freeport so that was pretty exciting. We made a large order of supplies and then another as the donations keep pouring in - we have so many wonderful, supportive and generous friends! Stay tuned for a detailed list of all the items that have been donated to help make birth a better experience for the women and babies in The Bahamas. Our host in Freeport is working hard to ensure that we will not be charged duty on our donations and has been busy organizing our orientation to The Rand maternity ward, a media frenzy on our arrival, an island tour and visits to prenatal and postpartum clinics on the Island. Our departure is less than 2 weeks away now!

Supplies ordered!

Thank you SO much to everyone who has donated items or money so far. Jennifer and I are overwhelmed with your generosity. Today we placed a large order for some supplies that were on the list that Sister Rolle sent to us. Our order includes multiple adult and infant stethoscopes, thermometers and probe covers, pulse oximeters and other goodies. We have also gathered quite a collection of other items including a desk blood pressure monitor, baby shampoo, a DVD player for the teen pregnancy program, a blood pressure cuff and stethoscope, 4 fetoscopes and a pinard horn (for listening to baby's heart beat in utero) and newborn diapers to name a few. We are still collecting items and hope to snag some used gowns for the moms to wear and various other comfort items for them. It will be so fun for us to show up bearing these gifts that have been donated by our friends and supporters. We anticipate taking at least one, maybe two suitcases full of supplies to donate. In addition Birth Unlimited has offered to ship a box of magazines on our behalf so that is great, plus we SO appreciate not having to transport them ourselves! Stay tuned for further updates - it's getting close now...