I was recently asked for a list of what not to do while apprenticing as a student midwife and it stumped me for a moment. The first thing that came to mind was “don’t have a bad attitude!”
This can be hard as a student because we are all humans and have our bad days. While I was apprenticing, I tried to always have a “yes” attitude. When asked to grab or do something by my preceptor I would try to remember to respond with phrases like “yes” or “of course” or “right away.”
This was hard because I am an extremely sarcastic person and I once had a client tell my preceptor that she did not like the way that I spoke to her (the preceptor). It really hurt my feelings because to my preceptor and I, we were just playing back and forth. It was then that I adapted this policy and tried to put my sarcasm on the back burner.
I didn’t always remember to be so willing on my bad days but it sure got easier over time and my mood improved while doing it. Happiness spreads!
So on to the Do’s and the Don’ts…
10 Things Not To Do
There are a few things that you should not do as a student midwife. Some of them could get you “fired” or let go from your apprenticeship or your school. Most of these things are just common sense.
- Not have a working cell phone/Be away from your cell phone while you are on call
- Not be reliable
- Discuss patients outside of the practice or with anyone your preceptor does not say you can
- Talk back to your preceptor or correct them in front of clients, save this for private talks and be respectful
- Tell anyone that you are a midwife. That is false advertising and can get your Texas state license revoked before you are eligible to become a midwife
- Do clinical tasks with out your preceptor’s knowledge or anything outside of a students scope
- Contact clients outside of work with out your preceptors approval
- Bad mouth your preceptor to others
- Lie to your preceptor when you make a mistake, own it, learn from it
- Come to work dirty, intoxicated, or with a foul attitude
Related – Supplemental Income for Midwifery Students
10 Things To Do
What you should do as a student midwife is a lot more fun!
- Join your local midwife group (North Texas has the North Texas Midwives group)
- See if your area has a student midwife meet up and join it
- Join Facebook groups for student midwives and for midwifery in general – there is so much knowledge waiting for you
- Ask questions at the right time, questions should always be encouraged during the correct moments
- Keep a phone charger in your bag with you and a car charger
- Ask for more responsibility
- Look like you know what you are doing even if you are not sure of yourself yet – show confidence in what you are doing
- Give yourself time to process the good and the bad
- Be ready – birth happens at all hours, at all times and it is so much less stressful when you have have extra clothing, snacks and supplies ready to go at the drop of a hat
- Have fun! While we are responsible for our client’s and their babies, we need to have fun while we do it. This work is never boring!
What else would you add to the “do not do” list?
