Changing Birthing table in Labor and Delivery (Essay Sample)

Changing Birthing table in Labor and Delivery
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Changing the Birthing table in Labor and Delivery
Introduction
There is an increasing urge and motivation in the practices of obstetric to help the laboring women have a pleasant experience during the laboring process. This is based on the findings that less painful birthing and psychological benefits can be achieved as a result of the adoption of some birthing positions that are very advantageous as far as the birthing process is concerned (Chapman & Charles, 2013). Some of the positions of birthing have been in use for centuries. They include sitting, squatting, kneeling, and even standing. There are various reasons why many of these positions are adopted, and why some positions are better than others. The standing positions have been established to be of maximum advantage in the birthing process (Bick, Munro & Jokinen, 2012). The discussion of this paper is based on the need of changing birthing tables that encourage the squatting position in the birthing process. This discussion will highlights evidence based advantages that are associated with tables adopting this position and the reasons as to why many hospitals and clinic have to adopt the birth table and chairs that support the squatting position so as to make the birthing process less painful and non-stressing on a psychological point of view.
Background
The frustration that is experienced in the birthing necessitates the adoption of birthing tables utilizing the squatting position. The need for the same is brought up by the need to assure safety to women in labor. One of the agreements that that is held by midwives is the need to give the women the freedom to have control while in labor. It has been established that when the women are denied the control over the same, they have tended to cause a lot of problems that resulted to waste of time particularly in random position changes (Chapman & Charles, 2013). The control aspect is also related to the aspect where the women want to see their new babies first. This would not be possible with tables adopting the lying positions because the women are required to shift their heads forward. With the squatting position, it is very easy for the woman to see the baby as it comes out.
Pushing as a requirement that comes in the second stage of labor is significant activity. Some of the caesarian births have come up as a result of the inability of women to push during the birthing session. The impact of this has been that a lot of time is used during birthing. The need to undertake the caesarian birth also results into more than two aspects. These are the aspect of increasing cost as well and painful experience in birthing. The cost aspect comes up because the caesarian procedures are not as easier as they tend to be and thus, expert skills and knowledge are a must requirement. All these come with an element of increased costs. The caesarian procedures also leave some women with psychological problems which make subsequent birthing very problematic. However, gravity can be utilized to make the process of pushing lighter. The squatting position is said to favor the use of gravity (Crowther et al, 2013)
It is a desire for most women to be in a comfortable positing while in the process of giving birth. The time spent during the same process is said to be related to the aspect of comfort. The implications are that the birthing position chosen should be one that will facilitate a quick birthing process (Chapman & Charles, 2013). This should be encouraged for the benefit of the woman and the benefits of the midwives to make the process less painful for the laboring women and reduce the chances of dealing with birthing complications for the midwives.
Discussion
It is a general agreement that women should be given help in adopting the positions that they deem comfortable for themselves. However, it is of much importance for the midwives to provide information to women on the advantageous of the upright positions such as the squatting so as to make them willingly accept them for the right experiences during birth. It has been established that birthing tables utilizing upright positions result to various advantageous that are physiological in nature. The upright positions results to desirable fetus positioning for a safe birthing process. In most cases, it is established that tables using the lying position have a significant effect in putting the fetus under distress as opposed to the squatting position. The aorta-cavil compression risk is better managed in the squatting position. This is as a result of reduced compression of the aorta-cavil because the gravid uterus is kept off from major blood vessels. Furthermore, the fact that increase in the pelvic outlet and effective contractions are achieved in a squatting position are justification for the encouragement in the adoption of tables using this position in birthing.
Less painful birthing process has a psychological advantage on women. A significant reduction in pain is achieved through the reduction of the stages of birth, particularly the first and second stages (AmiriFaharani, Ali & Shirazi, 2012). The squatting position, as an upright position adopted during the birthing process, results to the reduction in the first stage of this process hence, the reduction in the pain. The other advantage of the length reduction of the first stage is a reduction in changing in positions by the laboring women. This is important because the use of narcotics and equally the epidurals is minimized. These drugs are always used strategically to reduce the pain ad cope with the aspect of changing in position of the women in trying to cope with the pain. The epidural has been established as having negative impacts on spontaneous pushing because it causes a delay and decreased response to the urge of pushing. Spontaneous pushing is the strong urge that compels a woman to push very voluntarily as opposed to forceful hard pushing. As such, the benefits of spontaneous pushing are foregone. Spontaneous pushing causes less pressure on the body and less tearing of the pelvis, and the combination of spontaneous pushing with gravity make the process very easy and shorter. This is explained through the effective redistribution of pressure that is achieved by the squatting position (Korstjens & Lagro-Jansse, 2012). In this position, there is even pressure distribution throughout the circumference of the vagina, which results to the bringing down of the head of the fetus due to increased urge of pushing and the force of gravity. More women consider the squatting position as being more safe, effective and comfortable in the birthing process. All these factors are important in a psychological aspect in such a manner that they give the women the feeling of being in control of the whole process of birth.
The advantage of using tables having squatting position in the second stage of birthing is that the chances of women giving birth with minimal assistance are increased. However, this comes up with an increase in blood loss of approximately 500mls, which is not very fatal because it can be sorted out through transfusion (McNelis, 2013). The less assistance in birth means that the cost of engaging many midwives is foregone. Therefore, the squatting positions should be encouraged.
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