Post Caesarean Care: Healthcare, Midwifery, and Patient Wellbeing

This assignment examines the comprehensive care provided to mothers following a caesarean section, emphasizing the crucial role of healthcare professionals, including nurses and midwives. The post-operative care involves regular monitoring of vital signs such as blood pressure, heart rate, and pain levels, along with the administration of analgesics to manage pain. The assignment also highlights the importance of catheter maintenance to prevent infections, physiotherapy to aid physical recovery, and debriefing sessions to prepare mothers for the emotional and physiological changes post-pregnancy. Furthermore, the assignment explores the support midwives offer during the postpartum period, addressing emotional, mental, and physical well-being, including counseling for post-partum depression and assistance with infant care. The document references research on pain management, the role of midwives, and the overall healthcare approach to support both mother and child after a caesarean delivery.

Post Caesarean Care
Student Name
University Name

TASK:
The caesarean section is a major surgery where the mother is expected to stay in the hospital
for a span of three to four days after the delivery to heal (National Collaborating Centre for
Women's and Children's Health, 2011). The mother is thus required to be cared for along with
her child as they both are often in a vulnerable physical and mental state. The post operation
caesarean care includes the regular monitoring of the vitals of both the mother and the child,
by healthcare professionals like nurses or midwives. This procedure includes checking of
blood pressure, haemoglobin saturation, heart rate, pain intensity and reactions to
administered drugs, which are required to be done frequently tested to detect any signs of
discomfort of the mother (Sagkal Midilli & Ciray Gunduzoglu, 2016). The midwives as well
as the nurses often administer intrathecal analgesics like morphine or patient controlled
analgesics, to help the mother cope the high pain intensity instigated by the caesarean section
(Moriyama, Ohashi, Motoyasu, Ando, Moriyama & Yorozu, 2016). The mothers, due to the
lack of motility during the post operation caesarean period, are often provided with urinary
catheters. Thus, the maintaining and regular cleaning of the catheters are crucial to avoid any
urinary infections which might raise medical complications. The mothers are also provided
with physiotherapy by the midwives and nurses to help improve their physical health (Stubbs
et al., 2014). Before discharge from the hospital, the mothers are often debriefed about the
hormonal, emotional, mental as well as physiological changes that they might face after
pregnancy and post caesarean operation.
References:

Moriyama, K., Ohashi, Y., Motoyasu, A., Ando, T., Moriyama, K., & Yorozu, T. (2016).
Intrathecal administration of morphine decreases persistent pain after cesarean
section: a prospective observational study. PloS one, 11(5), e0155114. Retrieved
from: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0155114
National Collaborating Centre for Women's and Children's Health (UK). (2011). Caesarean
section. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23285498
Sagkal Midilli, T., & Ciray Gunduzoglu, N. (2016). Effects of Reiki on Pain and Vital Signs
When Applied to the Incision Area of the Body After Cesarean Section
Surgery. Holistic nursing practice, 30(6), 368-378. Retrieved from:
https://doi.org/10.1097/HNP.0000000000000172
Stubbs, B., Probst, M., Soundy, A., Parker, A., De Herdt, A., De Hert, M., ... & Vancampfort,
D. (2014). Physiotherapists can help implement physical activity programmes in
clinical practice. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 204(2), 164-164. Retrieved from:
https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.204.2.164

REPLY:
Taking the aid of a midwife can be highly crucial for the baby as well as the mother, post
pregnancy. Considering that the postpartum period refers to the period of initial 6-8 weeks
after childbirth, the hormone levels of the mother usually tends to come back to the non-
pregnant state. This sudden change can embark significant modifications in the mental and
physical wellbeing of the mother. A midwife can help in providing the necessary emotional,
mental as well as physical support to the mother and give health counselling to effectively
understand and manage the hormonal and physiological changes in the mother.
One of the main issues of post pregnancy is the post-partum depression. New mothers are
often counselled by midwives to not only overcome their post-partum depression but also
traumatic birth experiences (Simpson & Catling, 2016). They can even administer pain
relievers to the mothers, assist them in breastfeeding, bathing, changing nappies, as well as
carry out health tests of the baby (Fallon, 2017). Other than providing counselling and health
education, midwives also tend to provide care for the new-born child and are often seen to
extend their services in aiding the new mothers in childcare planning.

References:
Fallon, V. (2017). Examining Maternal Anxiety and Infant Feeding from Pregnancy to
Parenthood (Doctoral dissertation, University of Liverpool). Retrieved from:
https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/3006812/1/200931953_Nov2016.pdf
Simpson, M., & Catling, C. (2016). Understanding psychological traumatic birth experiences:
A literature review. Women and Birth, 29(3), 203-207. Doi:
10.1016/j.wombi.2015.10.009