Teach the Breech Review of Day 2

Day 2 of Teach the Breech was just as exciting as Day 1

Several stations with manikins and dolls allowed for hands on practice.

 

Dutch  Midwife Rebekka Visser spoke on the lack of a control group for breech birth.

 UK midwife Shawn Walker gave a brilliant talk on collaboration. She started with a humorous anecdote showing a brilliant insight to the culture of birth care. Her talk as well as her tweets are comprehensive, insightful and academically satisfying.

 

Betty-Anne Daviss and Ken Johnson spoke on the statistics and dynamics of research. These two crossed the ocean of differences between OB and midwifery breech care to increase safety in both by doing the data crunching for the Frankfurt breech research.  This study, I believe, is the key to safe breech birth on earth. This is where we go to open the birthing rooms to breech birthing families in hospitals and increase the safety of midwifery-led breech care in all settings.

What amount of training makes breech safer?

Frank Louwen  teaches obstetricians from his University medical center as well as occasionalHe  visiting obstetricians from around the world. He says we must have better training and better methods  for breech birth that isn’t dangerous. After showing us the upright breech birth statistics, he actually said, “Breech birth isn’t dangerous.”  It is more complicated than cephalic but statistically very justifiable.

Dr. Louwen points out that a provider is not competent until they can identify when breech is not progressing normally and have the solutions to return the baby to the position of progress.

Dr. Louwen identified how to see when the breech baby was stuck and several safe, and simple ways to handle various complications of breech births. I’ve been using the identifiers and techniques he teaches and can say without a doubt that his teaching has saved half a dozen lives while making another half dozen more comfortable (figuring someone would have figured those easier degrees of obstruction out). This is information that North American midwives do not get in their training or traditions! It must be shared and understood to make breech practice approach a level of safety to safely offer labor care for selected women.