November 27, 2013 Clinical Update

Hello, lovely (thankful) students!

Just a few quick reminders as you're getting ready for the end of the semester. EVERYONE currently enrolled in CLNC 100 needs to complete the clinical handbook quiz before the end of the semester. If you attended a clinical orientation session, that covers this assignment. Make sure you are familiar with the requirements of your program--download and read the clinical handbook and take the quiz!

If you're in a clinical placement, you'll need to turn in your evaluations at the end of the term. Download them from the Clinical Program tab now and avoid the rush!

I've had a lot of questions lately about Getting Approved for Primary Births, so I put together this little summary: http://prezi.com/z4odcvkxmzil/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy
Take a look!

There are no more clinical rounds during December, but they will return in January. If you'd like to present, let me know--I have spaces open in January and February!

Finally, this is BIG, BIG news. I now have a direct office phone number! I can now be reached during office hours and by appointment--message me for the number. This is not my personal cell phone, so no more dire warnings about the consequences of calling me in the middle of the night! Huzzah!

All the best--I am grateful for you!

Sarah Carter

International Clinical Placement Policy

In considering International Clinical Placements, Midwives College of Utah expects that student midwives will show cultural humility and sensitivity in all their interactions with clients, regardless of locality. We further expect that clinical field faculty (preceptors) and sites approved by Midwives College of Utah will be accountable, honest and demonstrate the utmost respect for all clients, student midwives and practicing midwives, in accordance with the Midwives Model of Care, which is and has always been the standard we set for midwifery education. Transparency, cultural appropriateness and primacy of client care are expected of all clinical sites, regardless of location.

Students planning to pursue Clinical Placement outside of their country of residence*:

1. Must fulfill the normal requirements for students in clinical placement (enrolled in CLNC 100, accepted to the Clinical Program, etc.)

2. Must have completed SOSC 150 (Cultural Competency) with the International Clinical Study module (requiring 10-20 hours of class work) before leaving for their clinical placement. For students planning international placements before May 1, 2013, speak to the Clinical Dean about accommodations for this requirement.

3. Must meet with the Clinical Dean or a clinical department staff member before and after their international placement to discuss appropriate behavior in placement and debrief their experience.

*Traveling between the US and Canada will not be considered “outside their country of residence” due to the strong cultural similarities between the two nations in this case. If you are traveling to a country you feel is culturally very similar to your home country, you can ask for an exclusion of this requirement.

Clinical Field Faculty (Preceptors) or Clinical Sites outside of the United States and Canada:

1. Must fulfill the typical requirements for clinical field faculty and sites. All documentation must be in English or translated into English by a reliable source.

2. Preceptors or site directors must complete an interview explaining how they work with local birth attendants, respect cultural norms, practice informed consent for care (especially care provided by visiting student midwives), how possible conflict between student/preceptor or student/student will be resolved, how they recognize autonomy of their clients (including offering choice and alternatives), how they measure their accountability to the community they serve and how students will be trained on cultural differences during their placement.

We reserve the right to revoke approval of a clinical site or preceptor at any time if they are found to be practicing outside the Midwives Model of Care, or showing disrespect for a client, student or midwife's culture, color, religion, education, socioeconomic status, or other difference. We encourage students who witness such behavior, whether in a single instance or in systemic ways, to prioritize the rights of clients and midwifery as a whole over their individual needs for development and learning, and to speak up about injustice, addressing concerns directly to their field instructors and to the clinical department with an eye toward improvement and strengthening midwifery culture as a whole.

November 12, 2013 Update

Hello, ladies!
As you've seen, the new International Clinical Placement policy is out. Please contact me if you have questions!

Also, as we approach the end of the semester, I've had several questions about what needs to be turned in. Really simply, if you haven't been in clinical placement this semester, you don't need to turn anything in. If you've completed your Clinical Handbook quiz or Orientation session, you're in good shape. Make sure you understand the Clinical Application process and do the Preparations for a Successful Field Study before you start your first Clinical Placement. You're in good shape!

If you are in Clinical Placement or have done clinical work this semester, you need to turn in the following items:
+ Statement of Clinical Progress-(with your most current log forms, if possible)
+ Student Self-Evaluation-This is an excellent tool for you to look back on the work you've done and look forward to your next step. I strongly encourage students to have a conversation with their preceptors about the questions on this form. If you would like to set up an appointment for a phone interview in place of this form, let me know and we'll set a date for the end of the term.
+ Student Evaluation of Preceptor (yes, please fill one out for each preceptor if you have more than one, and the reverse is also true--if you have more than one preceptor, please ask them each to evaluate you).
+ Preceptor Evaluation of Student (they can send this to me directly if preferred).
All of these forms are downloadable as a group on the Clinical Program tab as "Evaluation Forms" for your convenience!

Say what?

EVERYONE should have completed the Clinical Handbook assignment by now. If you didn't attend a Clinical Orientation session, download and read the Clinical Handbook and take the quiz. There will be more Clinical Orientation sessions scheduled in January--you don't have to be a new student to attend--all students are welcome!

Finally, don't miss Clinical Rounds next Tuesday, November 19th at 7 pm Mountain time zone. Lindsay Kinman will be presenting a case I hear is very exciting! 

Hope to see you all there!
Sarah Carter

October 25, 2013 Update

Just a quick update today--
The new International Clinical Placement Standards should be out next week. If you've sent me logs lately, I apologize--I am working on logs 2+ hours a day and I am still behind. I am trying to catch up. I promise. (Don't stop sending them to me. Just be patient.)

Also, the Test Request deadline for taking the February 2014 NARM exam is next week: November 1. I've received documents from the students who told me they were taking the exam already and I will be in contact with them after the deadline about any additional paperwork that's needed but if you are planning to take the NARM next February, please let me know ASAP!

Finally, a note about FORMS for taking the NARM. When you start primary births, or continuity of care births, I would encourage you to download these 3 forms:
Form 200-NARM Continuity of Care form (available from this link: http://narm.org/equivalency-applicants/meac-download-application-forms/ -make sure you get the right one for your "program"--if you don't know if you're new or old, you're probably new.)
Form 204-NARM Out of Hospital Birth form (same link as above)
MEAC Continuity of Care form (downloadable from the Clinical Program tab on your left).

If you have COC and OOH forms from the old clinical handbook, or that say MCU on them, NARM is now requesting that you use ONLY THEIR FORMS, not any others. If you already filled out old/out of date forms, don't panic. They can still take them if you can't get the new forms filled out, but they really prefer their forms over ours (I know, I'm trying not to take it personally either. Send chocolate). Certainly, if you haven't done your COCs yet, these will be good to have on hand!

The MEAC form replaces the need to send charts in for Continuity of Cares--much simpler and more compact, but it does need to be signed by your preceptor. If you have chart copies instead and no way to get your preceptor to sign the MEAC form, it will be ok, but again, the MEAC form is much preferred.

Hope you're all doing well--enjoy some apple cider this weekend, especially those ladies who took the NARM at the MANA conference yesterday. Woohoo!

Sarah

October 14, 2013 Update

Hello, everyone!

We had a wonderful time at conference--I enjoyed getting to see so many of you in person and I apologize if I wasn't available enough. I'm working on a plan to be more accessible and organized for student meetings during conference in the spring. 

Photo by Darren Hester, Creative Commons

A quick reminder about events this week:

On Tuesday, October 15 at 7:00 pm (Mountain time): Cheryl Furer will be presenting Clinical Rounds on Biophysical Profiles. It looks like a very informative and helpful presentation. Those who were in the Prenatal Care conference class, I know we talked about these briefly and Cheryl's got a great case and explanation of this procedure.

Then on Friday, October 18 at 8:00 am, there will be a meeting for students planning on graduating and taking the NARM in 2014 (if you've already attended one of these sessions, no need to attend again--this is the same thing). If you're not sure if you should attend, shoot me a quick message and we'll discuss your plans.

I've had quite a few requests from students for internships--if you know about a clinical opportunity, please send it to me, whether long or short term. We can help each other out!

Finally, my office hours are still Friday mornings from 9 to 11 am Mountain time. I keep my skype up and my email blinking. If you'd like a traditional phone call, we can do that too! I'd love to talk to you!

All the best,

Sarah Carter

October 7, 2013 Update

Happy Autumn, everyone!

I'm sending this from the MCU conference--our beginning students are enjoying a session on Preparing Your Clients for Birth--I hear lots of laughter and happiness from over there, and our advanced students (and several midwives from the community) are studying ob pharmacology in the other room. Much more serious, but good learning happening while the caterer sets up a delicious-looking lunch.

For those wondering about international clinical placement standards, they are in progress and you can expect updates within the next two weeks. This is very important to us and we are working on it!

Also, for anyone who missed the online Clinical Orientation calls held earlier in the semester or would like to review, I have a recording of it now, available to download - Message me for the link and do message me with questions!

Upcoming clinical events for the coming month:
Thu Oct 10 at 12:00 noon (all Mountain time): Clinical Rounds-Special session LIVE from the conference on Cultural Awareness and Ethics in Clinical Practice

Tue Oct 15 at 7:00 pm: Clinical Rounds-Cheryl Furer will be presenting on Biophysical Profiles

Fri Oct 18 at 8:00 am: Class of 2014 Clinical meeting--for students planning on graduating and taking the NARM in 2014 (if you've already attended one of these sessions, no need to attend again).

Thursday, Oct 24 will be the NARM exam at MANA Conference so spare a thought for your sisters who will be testing that day.

Finally, Friday, Nov 1 is the deadline for Request to Test forms for students planning to take the February NARM exam.

Out of Country Midwifery Practice

Dear Students,
As you know, the Midwives College of Utah is committed to excellence. We believe that all women deserve a gentle safe birth experience that is free from any bias related to gender, race or religion. We've been very touched and impressed with the emails and calls we've received about out of country clinical practice. It is heartening to see how passionate and concerned many of you are about the issues that have been raised lately in the midwifery community at large, specifically about the organization Midwife International. In addition to many of our students who have done and continue to do midwifery internships overseas, we are an international school, serving students who live outside the United States and Canada. As this issue has come to the forefront, it's become more and more apparent that it is something that needs to be addressed by all midwives, not only those who live or work in disadvantaged areas.

MCU is working on a full plan to address these issues, including cultural competency training for students before beginning clinical training and a review of our standards for international clinical placement. It's a big issue and it's going to take a while for us to get a handle on it in a manner that is appropriate and thorough- not a quick fix But we know a lot of you have concerns about the "right now" and we wanted to address those concerns.

1. MCU has no students in placements at this time with Midwife International and no additional placements with this organization will be approved in the near future.

2. All international midwifery placements are under review. We are not closing the door on international clinical work. Students are welcome to continue their international travels but at this time there is not a guarantee that these experiences will be accepted by the school.

3. It is the expectation that any MCU student traveling internationally will behave in culturally humble ways, and adhere strictly to the Midwives Model of Care, including respect for the autonomy of all clients and honesty in all situations. If you are in an international placement currently or have plans to travel soon, please contact the Clinical Dean immediately with your questions and we will do our best to answer them.

We are deeply troubled by the lack of accountability and standards in some international programs. If a woman is not given the opportunity to consent to care by a student midwife, the Midwives Model of Care is not in place. Any organization or birth place that does not follow the Midwives Model of Care is not an appropriate learning setting for our students. There is no place in midwifery for acts of neo-colonialism.

We'd like to hear more about your experiences and thoughts on this issue. There will be a thread on the bulletin board on this topic for discussion; we will be having conversations about this at the conference and online. The Clinical Rounds that would have been Thursday, October 10 will be replaced by a discussion about international midwifery work and cultural ethics. All students are invited to this session.

In the midwifery spirit,
Kristi Ridd-Young, President
Sarah Carter, Clinical Dean 
Nicole Croft, Academic Dean
Karen Hertel, Graduate Dean