Today I am talking to a ‘Fab Obs’.
#FabObs is the hashtag we use in our #MatExp social movement - an obstetrician who ‘gets it’. Listening to what matters to women.
Finding ways to prioritise, obviously, the safety of mother and baby, but really listening to women – and indeed helping them tease out the choices and birth options.
And today that #FabObs is Alison Wright. Alison is the immediate past Vice-president of the RCOG (Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists) – a big advocate for the RCOG women’s network, embedding women’s voices into every aspect of the college‘s work. Forward-thinking and exciting.
Alison has led the development of ‘I decide’ - a tool enabling women to think through choices and decisions in labour.
As well as being a champion of maternity experience, Alison is also ‘just’ an everyday ‘Obs and gynae’ doctor.
Lemon lightbulbs 🍋💡🍋
- LISTENING to women and families throughout their birth journeys and pregnancy
- Providing personalised care in maternity services, in times of staffing pressures and recruitment difficulties
- Personalised care means different things to different people
- Teasing out what matters to you - #WMTY
- Being honest with women, sharing information about difficult topics eg anal sphincter tears
- Largely, women want to know what might happen. Don’t assume they don’t
- Information is key! It gives controll
- Creative methods useful for sharing information and breaking down barriers to engagement
- Tim Draycott’s innovative work on the Odan device
- ‘I decide’? - a clever acronym - check it out! Nadine Montgomery ruling re informed consent
- Shoutout for Florence Wilcock, champion of personalised care; co- founder of #MatExp
- Involving Maternity Voices Partnerships and NHS Resolution in teasing out the future
- Should we be looking to solve problems in the short or long term?
- The RCOG Women’s Network is influential
- Perceived tensions between what women want and what clinicians want. Actually, we all want the same thing!
- Shadowing other healthcare professionals is really useful - (mutual) shadowing an antenatal teacher
- #NoHierarchyJustPeople is a key #MatExp mantra
- Blue light - the Obs Pod Emergency!
- Family Integrated Care - new #WhoseShoes work 😀
- Let’s encourage all obstetricians to get involved! To have a seat at the table!
- Ask the obstetrician 🍋💡🍋
- Relationships matter. Form a relationship with your obstetrician
- People don’t like the unexpected - easier to deal with if you know what might happen
- “If you start being a patient advocate, you ’ll never have a career in medicine!“
- ⏩ Huge shift in thinking! Bring together the patient experience and the clinician’s experience through coproduction
- Important not to swing too far ⏩ everyone has choice, do whatever you like! 😬
- No dumping! Healthcare professionals need to accept responsibility, to steer choice sensibly
- Informed choice. But make it realistic. What would you do in my position?
- Clinicians have responsibility to give evidence from their experience, their opinion.
- We’re all on the same side! Let’s work together! Obstetricians are a key part in this!
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