Birth plan - student midwives?

[Viralsunflower]

Hi all

I'm 31 weeks and starting to put together my birth plan, to go over with the community midwife in a few weeks time. This is my second labour.
I am umming and ahhing about what I consent to when it comes to students.

My first labour was very long and I took a very long time to progress, contractions were full on straight away but I wasn't dilating. Baby went back to back so the contractions were intense and the examinations were really uncomfortable. Because of this I didn't consent to the student doing the examinations, because the qualified midwife also needed to do them, and I'd rather only go through that once each time.

Around 20 hours in the qualified midwife had to disappear for an emergency and left me with the student. The student was a bit crap at this point and stayed out the way, she was very quiet and didn't really offer any support. I did have birth partners with me. I was asked to stay on my back and as can sometimes happen in labour, I started pooing (sorry for the overshare) and was unable to stop this happening. She didn't offer to help clean me up until I pleaded with her to do it and I was really aware I was lying in it. I've been told by other people that when this happened to them the midwife whipped it away so quickly you barely even knew you'd done it. Birth partners were offering to do it but they didn't know where the supplies were to put underneath me, the student did.

I asked to get up and move around and at this point said I needed to push. She said "no, you don't". I did, and that baby was on her way out. Multiple times I told her I felt the urge to push. She kept reiterating I was unlikely to be feeling the urge to push and baby couldn't come yet anyway (but didn't say why). So...I was holding baby in with each contraction, worried that it wasn't safe for baby to come yet!! When I told her that I was literally clenching against contractions she ran in to the hallway and started shouting for a midwife to come and help her. Low and behold, I was 10cm and baby was on the way. A qualified midwife turned up to deliver my baby. I am convinced that if I didn't have a student with me for that part, my labour would probably have been about 5 hours shorter.

I think I had a really bad student midwife experience, but this has lead to me putting that whilst I am happy for a student to be present for labour and delivery, I am not happy for a student to be in charge of my care, to be left with a student, I want the student to be supervised, and not perform an episiotomy if one is needed (the qualified midwife did my episiotomy thank goodness, I imagine it would have been butchered based on the rest of my experience if the student had done it). Basically, the student can observe, but that is it.

I feel a bit guilty stating all of this so explicitly in my birth plan and do wonder if I am doing somebody out of an important experience. Did I have a bit of bad luck before? Is it reasonable of me to say all of this so clearly?

I was about to suggest allowing one student to be present to observe (which is what I specified for both my births). But then I read your experience... yikes!

In your shoes, I would say no. The most important thing is that you are not stressed and, logical or not, you probably would be given your past experiences. There are enough people who would be fine having a student present (me included) that there is absolutely no need for you to "take one for the team", as it were.

On a side note, I specified up to one student for both my births (I was happy to have one, but didn't want a horde coming round with clipboards
... a twin birth would be my nightmare!). I did have a traumatic experience for my second birth being stitched up by a student so I probably wouldn't allow that again if I had a third DC. I'd had a precipitous birth, it had taken me ages deliver the placenta and looking back I was in shock. I also had significant blood loss. Being stitched was agony and, although she was fine, she was painstakingly slow and it took AGES! And every stitch was checked by around 2 other people and a discussion had about it over me. I was almost screaming by the end of it... probably unnerving for her, but I'd just had enough and the adrenaline and shock meant I was in extreme pain.

I was asked at one of my MW apps if a student could use me as a case and I said yes. She was fantastic. Gave me extra home visits and was there assisting in my emg c section. I had a lot of students while I was in hospital and I have to say they were all fantastic. I know that's not the case everywhere but I've worked in 2 teaching dental hospitals and am very pro students- they have to practice somewhere! I asked for feedback forms for all of them they were great. I do get it tho if you've already had a tough labour and not good students I can see why you'd be more hesitant I just had a really good experience so completely different x

Thank you everyone for your replies. I think I will change the wording on my birth plan and just straight up say "no students".
USaYwHatNow your perspective is really helpful, thank you. You are right, I could be distracted just knowing there's a student in the room.
Good idea asking to know where the emergency call bell is. I think I know what it looks like now as DH had to press it at one point during my first labour when they thought baby's heartbeat had massively slowed down, the room filled with people in about 20 seconds. It turns out the heart rate monitor had just fallen off.