Happy Friday…and hello October! Is this year flying by super fast for anyone else? Fall is nearly over in Alaska – our trees go from green to yellow to red to brown in about 3 weeks. And the hubby pulled the snowblower out of the shed this weekend while I bribed littles in and out snow suits and snow boots to see what fits and doesn’t for the upcoming winter. We’re definitely preparing to hunker down. Also, Costco has Halloween and Christmas decor up for sale at the same time?! Does the lower 48 do this and I just don’t remember?

Anyways, this Friday Five is packed full of goodies. Even though the posts are few and far between right now (thank you graduate school, pregnancy and work), I still try and maintain a list of resources that come across my path for the Friday Fives (fun fact: these are often my favorite posts to read on other bloggers sites). Hope you find these as useful and interesting as I did!

1. The Choosing Wisely Campaign. I’ve talked about them before but a recent ear infection in the family had me glancing at their “Do I need antibiotics?” handouts. Check out their additional resources for patients (and providers) here!

• Specific to obstetrics, I really like the list published by the Society for Maternal and Fetal Medicine’s: Fifteen Things Physicians and Patients Should Question. My favorite on the list is number 8: Don’t place women, even those at high-risk, on activity restriction to prevent preterm birth. For whatever reason, this topic comes up rather often with patients. Bed rest is a thing of the past. Most of the time I tell patients – if we’re putting you on bedrest, we’re usually talking about induction or delivery recommendations as well.

2. New instagram: @doulalibrary. You all know I love a good reading list. I find new books and resources all the time and quickly followed this account to seek out some new ideas and recommendations to women. Apparently there’s a podcast too!

3. MediHoney. I had no idea this stuff exists. Seriously, 12 years of labor and delivery and still learning new stuff (I love it!). One of my dear friends had her first babe last week and in texting to see how she and her little one were doing she told me all about this little product handed out as a routine postpartum medication in the hospital she delivered. Interested? It’s on Amazon for $10!

4. Immunization Call to Action: A publication from ACNM, AAFP, ACOG, and AWHONN, aimed at encouraging flu (influenza) and pertussis (TDaP) vaccination in pregnant women.

5. National midwifery week: October 4-10th! Take a look at this list if you need ideas for any events….or just drop a thank you card to your local midwife and give her/him all the feels! List from ACNM (see the whole list here!):

1. Contact your clients and host a birthday party for the babies whose births you attended during the past year. Gather all the children together for a group photo and send it with a news release to local papers.
2. Ask administrators to announce National Midwifery Week in departmental meetings, and offer to host a presentation on your role as a midwife.
3. Organize an afternoon of free services: free Pap smears, cholesterol and blood pressure checks, breast exams, etc. for local women, during which musicians, local artisans, and other community people are present. Perhaps incorporate a brief presentation on the history of midwifery.
4. Conduct a poster contest for clients’ children. They could draw pictures, or otherwise be creative working with mom for National Midwifery Week. A panel of judges could select winners and award ribbons.
5. Encourage your governor or mayor to proclaim National Midwifery Week. Work with your governor or mayor to invite as many civic and health care leaders as possible to the signing of the proclamation and release a photo of the event to local newspapers and post on social media.
6. Organize storytelling groups of women who would like to share their childbirth experiences. This is helpful to women who are expecting their first child to remove fear and inspire them.
7. Enlist volunteers to help your local food bank collect donations or deliver meals to pregnant women in low-income areas, or to assist with community information displays.
8. Secure permission to use a vacant store window, library or hospital display case, or other appropriate space to create a public display of midwifery information and photos of mothers with children. Encourage other women’s health groups to participate on a local level and offer them display space as well.
9. Charge up next year’s Blankets for Babies^SM effort with a drive to collect new, unwrapped blankets. Disseminate blankets among local birth centers, or continue gathering through the ACNM Annual Meeting.
10. Arrange for a community theater group or college drama club to perform a midwifery-focused play, or arrange for a free public showing of a film with a midwifery or childbirth theme.
11. Ask a local college or high school for an opportunity to serve as a guest speaker for a women’s studies and/or nursing class to recruit students to midwifery and promote the profession.
12. Request your local librarian to create a special display of available books about women’s health, childbirth, and midwifery.
13. Create a community quilt by asking individuals (clients, other midwives, physicians, nurses, etc.) to bring a scrap of fabric and host a quilting party. In a larger community, midwifery practices across the area could each take responsibility for a section of the quilt. The finished product might be presented and permanently displayed in the public library or rotated among hospitals and birth centers.
14. Conduct a midwifery work-a-thon, acknowledging every birth attended by a midwife during the week with a special letter, gift pack, and “I was born during National Midwifery Week” t-shirt.
15. Plan a breakfast or dinner to celebrate and officially inaugurate National Midwifery Week in your community. Consider honoring a local midwife who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession.
16. Send press releases to all local media including information about each of the local activities you have planned. Be sure to provide the name and phone number of a contact person.
17. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper explaining how midwives have impacted American culture and why it is important to celebrate National Midwifery Week.
18. Ask to exhibit at a local health fair. The community section in your local newspaper will usually have a list of ones in the area. Or, call your local hospital’s community relations office to inquire about exhibiting in their main lobby or other high traffic area.

Other fun goodies:

• See Life 2020 video from Focus on the Family – an annual campaign by Focus on the Family to talk about abortion and to celebrate the miracle of life. The video is about an hour long and some of the material is hard to watch, but it’s a stark reminder of how fragile life is and the importance of protecting life at every age – in and outside the womb.
• STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) activities for kids! This link came from the monthly emails associated with Dolly Parton Imagination Library. As a mama that is always looking for things to do with her kiddos that is educational and fun, this brought some new ideas to our house! We’ve also been playing with MagnaTiles nonstop and both the 1 and 3 year old are obsessed.
• A sewing pattern to make face masks for kids. I’ve been using adult masks on our 3 year old but realized my almost 2 year will also need a mask in December per our mandates. Wish me luck on convincing the almost 2 year old to actually wear said mask…
• Frontier Nursing University is hosting Empower 2020 in honor of the year of the nurse and the midwife. Register for FREE here! There are free continuing education (CE) credits as well (sign me up!). CE topics include: Midwifery Pearls of Telehealth and Hot Topics in the Management of Perimenopause and Menopause. The university is also hosting a session called the 411 on Becoming a Nurse-Midwife for those interested in midwifery schooling.
• Lastly, perinatal mood disorders are on the rise in the pandemic. This is expected since social distancing can be isolating for many people. The postpartum period (up to the baby’s first year of life) is a time period with so many blessings, changes and challenges – but it is also a time period that women can struggle with postpartum depression or anxiety, or both. Something I have found in practice is that sometimes women know something isn’t “right” but they aren’t sure how to describe their feelings. This tool is one of my favorites to help women tell their providers and families what they are feeling. Check out the handout: Perinatal Mental Health Discussion Tool.

All links updated on the RESOURCES page as well.

Have a wonderful weekend! Enjoy the fall leaves while you can!

Jamie