Postpartum Haemorrhage A Serious And Traumatic...

Postpartum haemorrhage is a serious and traumatic experience for the woman, the family, and also the health professionals involved. A primary postpartum haemorrhage is considered to be bleeding from the genital tract that exceeds 500ml at any time 24 hours post birth (Marshall, 2014). A loss of 1000ml or greater is considered to be a severe haemorrhage and most likely can have detrimental and life long effects on the woman (Marshall, 2014). During one of my post natal experiences, I came across a woman, Jessa, whom was considered to be a low risk pregnancy, and had just given birth to her third baby. She was at 34 weeks gestation with no significant problems throughout the pregnancy. One morning she had woken up to strong pains believed to†¦show more content†¦Aside from the medical part of her care, it was the self physical care in which the midwife I was working with, taught Jessa how to do. This is what I found was the most effective for her, as it helped with the repair of her perineum and it also gave her a sense of control over her care. Basic things to relieve the pain and trauma were like ice packs on the area, being educated on a low-residue diet to reduce the frequency of stools (Abdul Ranee, 2006), cleaning the area with just saline or water to prevent stinging and further pain, and also a range of pelvic floor exercises for when she gets home to try (Abdul Ranee, 2006). By Jessa being educated on these self care techniques, it gave her a sense of confidence that she was able to go home and not rely on the midwives to help her get through it. This what I believe to be a extremely important role of the midwife during a womans post natal care as it is following the care on to beyond the hospital setting. The physiological care that Jessa received was extremely consistent with what I had learnt, and I believe the way the midwives went about it was incredible. By the end of my placement I could see a definite improvement in Jessa’s phy sical health. An 8L blood loss is a very near death experience. It is so lucky that death wasn’t the result. Coming to terms with knowing you have almost died, is what Jessa struggled with the most, every day and night. The psychological support