The Breech Birth Conference was amazing. I’m still sort of in shock that I got to attend. As the only non-professional on the ticket, I was just a little intimidated, but! I got Jane Evans to commit to letting me help her get online, and I got Lisa Barrett to commit to learning how to Twitter! Hurrah!
A few high points:
- Got a strong sense of how much work is still to be done with regards to breech birth. Holy cow, the idea that hands and knees is an innovation just flabbergasted me. It really demonstrated how huge the gap is between the obstetrical model and the midwifery model. The very idea of “putting a woman in a position” just made my skin crawl.
- Got a strong sense of how deeply, profoundly, insanely flawed the American system really is. Listening to so many perspectives from so many other countries was so fantastic, and the fact that the conference organizers pulled so many people in from so many places was absolutely a credit to them.
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Finally got to see Birth, the play. Been hearing about it for ages, and this was the first opportunity I’d gotten to see it. I was really impressed; I’ve got a background in street theater, and formal theater folks always impress me.
- The Rideau Canal through Ottawa was the most gorgeous thing; how enlightened for a city to plan ahead for skating! I want to go back when it’s ice (and if you know me, you know how bizarre that is, I normally don’t like winter!)
A few low points:
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There was so much to cram into just two days of conference sessions. I was a breakout session, and every other person presenting at the same time was bummed they didn’t get to see the other presenters at that time. Everyone was so unique and so interesting, that missing even one session was frustrating.
- The OBs you get at something like this tend to be the good guys. And they have trouble believing that the bad guys even exist. So there’s some education to be done there.
So that’s my opinion. I hope I have enough to offer in the way of new social media info for them to invite me back next time. And hey America… when are we having ours? =)
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