Communicating fetal heart rate
Communication among staff members in hospital is vital no matter the procedure, but what happens if you were speaking a different language to your colleagues?
This is a challenge facing midwives and obstetricians when interpreting fetal heart rates using a CTG machine. Fetal heart rate monitoring is a screening tool usually used during labour to see if a baby is distressed.
Clinicians have different definitions for different changes in a baby’s heart rate, which understandably causes confusion.
Helen Cooke is a Clinical Midwifery Consultant at NSW Pregnancy and Newborn Services Network who has implemented a training program to get clinicians to speak the same language when interpreting fetal heart rates.
Producer: Ellen Leabeater
Image: Christine Tran on Flickr.
