Last week I spent more time in the hospital than in the office.
I reformatted my breastfeeding questionnaire to make it easier for the patients to answer. So last week my official questionnaire and scale were given to the receptionists at the front desk to be handed out to women coming in for postpartum appointments. Hopefully I'll have a good amount of scales to score and data to collect for my research.
Last Tuesday I observed three hysteroscopies in a row. Dr. Brotsky used the TRUCLEAR Operative Hysteroscopy System, a device that has visualization capabilities of a hysteroscope with minimally invasive tissue removal capabilities, for two of the surgeries.
Later that day, I met with Melissa, a lactation consultant, at Thunderbird. Melissa told me her personal story with postpartum depression after her first child and her perspective on mothers who could develop PPD with breastfeeding difficulties, especially first time mothers. I also joined her while visiting a patient who was having a hard time getting her baby to latch to breastfeed and witnessed the frustration with breastfeeding first-hand. I couldn't make a direct connection with PPD and breastfeeding based on my meeting with Melissa because she only meets with the patients while they're in the hospital whereas Dr. Brotsky requires prenatal and postnatal visits.
Hopefully this week I can meet with the social worker at the hospital and gain more insight on the connection between breastfeeding and PPD.
Stay tuned!
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Monday, March 21, 2016
Week Four
This week I got to observe a laparoscopy which is a surgical procedure done to look inside the belly or pelvis. A laparoscope, a lighted tube with a camera at the end, is inserted through a small cut through the navel. The surgery did freak me out a little because I didn't know doctors could go through our belly buttons. And that thought made me feel uneasy.
Like the previous weeks, I continued observing appointments with Doctor Brotsky on Monday but, I spent Tuesday reaching out to support groups for Postpartum Depression, finishing my questionnaire and researching terms and recent news. On that note, there has been a uterus transplant! It failed but, the surgery serves as a step to a future option for women. Also, Dr. Brotsky set me up with a social worker and a lactation consultant for next week so I can get more insight on how hospitals screen for PPD and the types of problems women have while breastfeeding and solutions the lactation consultants provide.
With the surveys and meetings for next week, I'll have so much more to talk about. Stay tuned!
Like the previous weeks, I continued observing appointments with Doctor Brotsky on Monday but, I spent Tuesday reaching out to support groups for Postpartum Depression, finishing my questionnaire and researching terms and recent news. On that note, there has been a uterus transplant! It failed but, the surgery serves as a step to a future option for women. Also, Dr. Brotsky set me up with a social worker and a lactation consultant for next week so I can get more insight on how hospitals screen for PPD and the types of problems women have while breastfeeding and solutions the lactation consultants provide.
With the surveys and meetings for next week, I'll have so much more to talk about. Stay tuned!
Monday, March 14, 2016
Week Three
It was a solemn week in the office due to the numerous cases of miscarriage, reports of babies with Downs Syndrome and elective terminations.
On the other hand, Dr. Brotsky saved a life while she was on call Monday night. Although I wasn't present, the story doesn't cease to amaze.
The patient, who's personal information I will not disclose, came into the hospital for a normal vaginal birth. While in labor, the baby's heart rate was quickly falling and Dr. Brotsky called for am emergency C-Section. The surgery was successful. Minutes later, the nurse calls Dr. Brotsky and reports abnormal and heavy bleeding from her vagina that wasn't stopping, called a postpartum hemorrhage. The patient's blood pressure was dropping and she was going into DIC, disseminate intravascular coagulation, a condition affecting the blood's ability to clot and stop bleeding. The patient's blood kept flowing and became almost "watery". The patient's deadly condition lead her to the operating room where Dr. Brotsky removed her uterus completely which stopped the bleeding and saved the patient's life.
Although Dr. Brotsky was exhausted from being up all night with this patient, she was fueled the next day by her patient's appreciation.
In the third trimester of pregnancy, patients come in weekly and then twice a week as they get closer to their due date. As a result, patients are recognizing me and we're building small relationships which is more comforting in the delivery room for the patients instead of having a random student show up while they are giving birth.
Next week I will start giving out the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale to Dr. Brotsky's patients. I will be adding my own questions regarding breastfeeding as a factor of Postpartum Depression. The surveys will be given to patients while they are in the waiting room to be filled out before their appointment. Dr. Brotsky will continue to hand out the surveys when I am not present and I will analyze the data when I come back to the office.
On the other hand, Dr. Brotsky saved a life while she was on call Monday night. Although I wasn't present, the story doesn't cease to amaze.
The patient, who's personal information I will not disclose, came into the hospital for a normal vaginal birth. While in labor, the baby's heart rate was quickly falling and Dr. Brotsky called for am emergency C-Section. The surgery was successful. Minutes later, the nurse calls Dr. Brotsky and reports abnormal and heavy bleeding from her vagina that wasn't stopping, called a postpartum hemorrhage. The patient's blood pressure was dropping and she was going into DIC, disseminate intravascular coagulation, a condition affecting the blood's ability to clot and stop bleeding. The patient's blood kept flowing and became almost "watery". The patient's deadly condition lead her to the operating room where Dr. Brotsky removed her uterus completely which stopped the bleeding and saved the patient's life.
Although Dr. Brotsky was exhausted from being up all night with this patient, she was fueled the next day by her patient's appreciation.
In the third trimester of pregnancy, patients come in weekly and then twice a week as they get closer to their due date. As a result, patients are recognizing me and we're building small relationships which is more comforting in the delivery room for the patients instead of having a random student show up while they are giving birth.
Next week I will start giving out the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale to Dr. Brotsky's patients. I will be adding my own questions regarding breastfeeding as a factor of Postpartum Depression. The surveys will be given to patients while they are in the waiting room to be filled out before their appointment. Dr. Brotsky will continue to hand out the surveys when I am not present and I will analyze the data when I come back to the office.
Monday, March 7, 2016
Week Two
It was another exciting week in Dr. Brotsky's office.
Dr. Brotsky and I saw almost 50 patients and I'm starting to meet more patients who had general depression and anxiety during their pregnancy and are great now that their baby has arrived. I've also seen cases where women have a smooth pregnancy and develop postpartum depression due to complications following birth, hormonal changes and even breastfeeding has been a factor in a couple cases.
I witnessed another vaginal delivery at Thunderbird on Monday and I observed a hysteroscopy Tuesday morning at Arrowhead in which I was exposed to a different kind of surgery and care that Dr. Brotsky provides.
This week's appointments led me to research antidepressant drugs that are safe to take during pregnancy, the stress of pumping especially with working mothers and the benefits of successful nursing, all of which will add to my research project.
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