Obstetrician and Nurse-Midwife Collaboration, Essay Example

In order to promote an interprofessional collaboration in obstetrics and women’s health, it is important to form a collaboration between obstetricians, neonatologists, pediatricians, anesthesiologists, and other members of staff (King et al., 2012). While obstetricians tend to work most directly, with the pregnant mother, the support staff is needed to ensure that the procedure goes according to plan and that the child is receiving appropriate care after he or she is born. This collaboration is called the Baby Friendly Initiative. It provides many facets for collaboration as it pertains to the care of both the mother and the child. Since all of these professionals have unique specialized care, allowing them to discuss their cases could lead to the best decisions being made for the care of their patients.

In particular, neonatologists are integral to determining whether the health of the child is at risk immediately following birth, while pediatricians are trained to support the health of the child until they reach adulthood. It is therefore important for the pediatrician to be aware of potential health risks experienced at birth because this will allow this professional to understand the health of the child in a new context. In addition, anesthesiologists must work closely with the obstetrician to determine the adequate dose of medication that the mother should be provided during the birthing process. In order to ensure that the least amount of pain is experienced while still promoting a healthy birth, it is important for the two professionals to collaborate (Shaw-Battista et al., 2011).

In my situation, the health care team is already collaborative because this is necessary to ensure that the proper health choices are being made for the patients. The support staff is always available to help doctors and nurses, which helps make our mission more successful overall.

References

King TL, Laros RK Jr, Parer JT. (2012). Interprofessional collaborative practice in obstetrics and midwifery. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am., 39(3):411-22.

Shaw-Battista J, Fineberg A, Boehler B, Skubic B, Woolley D, Tilton Z. (2011). Obstetrician and nurse-midwife collaboration: successful public health and private practice partnership. Obstet Gynecol., 118(3):663-72.