The following is posted by request of a friend. My comments follow.
BirthNet's BirthWatch Thanks Judging Amy
Last night the fictional CBS drama Judging Amy took the unusual step of depicting the apparent death of a supporting character (Gillian Grey played by Jessica Tuck) during a routine cesarean birth. You may remember that Judging Amy depicted a great (& successful) home waterbirth with a midwife a few years back. The writers and producers clearly have a good understanding of these issues and of normal birth.
If you saw the show, please take the opportunity to contact the network, and thank them for bringing awareness of both the dangers of cesarean birth and the problem of maternal death to American viewers. Also include mention of Ina May Gaskin's Safe Motherhood Quilt Project You can submit your comments here.
Please select Judging Amy in the pull down window. At a minimum, these producers will see that people are watching and appreciate their
perspective. Forward this message to other birth folks or anyone else you think might be interested.
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My comments: While I believe that we do way too many cesareans in this country, and as a result women die or are injured that need not be, I am still concerned about the effect of seeing any maternal death on TV. Some of you may remember the ER episode "Love's Labor Lost" - first as a childbirth educator, later a labor nurse, and now as a midwife, I am STILL doing damage control from just that one episode. I posted below about the inevitability of death as part of life in my profession. Well, the reality is that we lose some mothers too. We live in fallen world, folks. While I do want to encourage the media to present a fair view of matters pertaining to my profession and vocation, I am not all that sure of the best way to go about this. Sometimes I think we all forget that TV series are fiction, drama, and that there is often a need to bias matters to create interest.
So, if you saw the episode (I didn't, so can't comment directly) and have an opinion - here is your contact info.
I will continue to pray daily for the intercession of Blessed Gianna and St. Gerard for all pregnant women, with and without complicating factors.
