Reply to Devin's Comment:
Thank you for your comment Devin. I agree when you said I should have asked them what kind of jobs they are assigned. I guess that slipped my mind during the interview since before going there i was hoping to interview the mothers not the workers. Thank you for complementing my use of descriptive writing in describing the PATH center. I was reading some of the "good model"s' blogs and I noticed that many of you guys describe everything in detail so I tried implementing that in my own writing. If the 100% success rate is in fact accurate then yes, it is wonderful, but then again, that was said by a worker there so I'm not sure if he really is willing to speak negatively about his job.
Reply to Dev's (Protege) Comment:
Thank you for your comment. Those mothers are in a very delicate situation in their lives. I don't think anyone growing up imagine living in a homeless shelter when they are older so PATH does a very good job in protecting their dignity so they don't break down and fall into depression which for them will probably be very easy to do. I also like the fact that you enjoyed my project and I hope you will consider switching to Andy's class next semester.
Reply to Mentor's Comment:
Thank you for your comment. I agree with you when you said that I would have gotten a better and more accurate perspective of PATH if I had personally interviewed one or two of the mothers but because of the agreement PATH signed with the mothers when they provided them with shelter, I could not do this. If I was given another opportunity at doing this project, I would definitely go back to PATH and request a special interview and I bet if I tell them that it is for a school project that will promote PATH, they will surely be able to help me out.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
HW 44 - Comments on Other Peoples' Blogs
For Devin (Classmate)
Devin,
In your project you discussed the advantages and disadvantages of cutting the umbilical cord at a certain time. Directly after the baby is delivered or waiting a few minutes and cutting it then.
I liked that you focused on our unit’s main idea which is that practices we consider normal are actually very weird and in this case, incorrect. I liked that you argued both points of the spectrum and even though you sided with the umbilical cord not being cut immediately, you left the reader room for them to decide on their own as to which one they preferred. I also liked that you added a bit of experiential side to your academic project by informing a mother and a mother-to-be about the cutting of the umbilical cord and I think their responses summed up how the common people in this country think.
Your project was important to me because I consider myself above what I describe to be as the common people, yet I did not know about the risks and benefits of cutting the umbilical cord at different times. If I ever plan on having kids, I will definitely think about this and instruct my partner’s OB/GYN to cut the umbilical cord after a couple of minutes. And when s/he is cutting the cord, or if get to cut the cord, I might be thinking of you and your project. And to stick in someone’s memory as an influential person, especially in mine, is a true accomplishment. Good Job.
I think your speech was best in the class and I feel bad for the people who did not get to hear it. Your props with Stewie and the model placenta were very creative. Keep up the good work and make sure you make SoF proud when you’re in Cornell.
For Sarah Tornay (Writing Group)
Sarah,
In your project you decided to research about the risks of VBACs and a mother doing a C-Section every time she gives birth. You used a lot of statistics to back up your main idea and successfully informed the reader (me) on what the risks are of a VBAC and “once a C-Section, always a C-Section”.
I liked that you focused on something that is extremely controversial which drew me in when I started reading your blog post. I also liked that you used many statistical evidence to argue the risks and advantages of both VBACs and C-Section-every-time deliveries. Your project is important to me because it informed me on subjects I had little prior knowledge about. Now I will be able to argue with “educated” folk about which is more dangerous.
To make your project better, I would make it clearer as to what VBAC stands for. You mentioned it in the post, but I don’t think it was clear enough. I knew what it meant because I read Tina Cassidy’s “Birth” but the common people might be confused or lost and as what the common people do when they are confused, they stop. You don’t want your reader to stop reading your paper or read your entire paper while confused.
All in all, a good post. An advice for the next project you do; try and do something experiential so you feel as if you are physically active with your project instead of just doing it for a class grade.
For Johnny (Writing Group)
Johnny,
In your project you decided to look at alternatives of raising a child. The two alternatives you chose to look at were abortion and adoption.
I liked that for your project, you did not just use a random source from the internet. You actually read a book and gathered evidence to support your argument. Most high school teenagers wouldn’t do that.
To make your project better, I would suggest you use your words carefully. I know that sounds mean but I mean it in the kindest way possible. In your post you used the phrase, “kill the baby”, that is a heavy line. Abortion is a very delicate and controversial topic and like Andy said, “always talk about abortion as if someone in the room has had one.”
-----------------------------------------------
From Mentor (Father)
I am glad you selected a topic from which you are learning about birth process, it was most appealing to me that your instinct motivated you to visit the PATH in the Bronx. I liked your interest as you mentioned "The lack of information on PATH made it even more important for me to visit them." In fact most of the researchers get their information from primary sources and you hit the right place.
I would suggest you do not limit yourself questioning only one person who definitely has good amount of information, few mothers in PATH or any other place could be your good source of information. If they allow, you should try to get more information from PATH mothers. It is always better to develop a sound questionnaire to collect data/information so that you can collect some quantifiable data with some open ended questions.
At the end, I must say you gathered some valuable information which may lead you to further explore on the topic. Well done, all the best.
From Protege (Davendra)
I like how you obtained your information. The fact that you actually went to the organization themselves, and interviewed Mr.C shows a good dedication to your work. Also your getting more in depth info than what you can find around. I my self have never been in the situation of these mothers, however I imagine that it is not a great situation. I believe what PATH is doing is great because there are many in that type of situation, that can be assisted and inspired by what PATH does.
------------------------------------------------
From Devin (Classmate)
You asked yourself what the government does to help poverty stricken pregnant women in New York City and then you visited an office in the Bronx of an organization called PATH, which you found out a little about online.
I really liked the way you describe the look and feeling of the office at the entrance making the point of how unwelcoming it must be to a poor pregnant woman coming there. But then you contrast this with the happy looking women who were staying there, making it seem like a good place overall. It seemed amazing when Mr.C said that PATH has an 100% success rate helping mothers to support themselves finnancially and not need temporary housing again.
The work PATH does is really important. These are babies, ones born to poor single moms, who are most likely to drop out of school and not have a chance of making a good life for themselves. They need to be brought into the society not made to feel like outcasts.
Myy only suggestion would have to be to ask what kind of jobs the mothers got so that they could be independent and not need temporary housing. But maybe he would not have wanted a direct question like that. I think you did a great job describing this visit and making it interesting.
Devin,
In your project you discussed the advantages and disadvantages of cutting the umbilical cord at a certain time. Directly after the baby is delivered or waiting a few minutes and cutting it then.
I liked that you focused on our unit’s main idea which is that practices we consider normal are actually very weird and in this case, incorrect. I liked that you argued both points of the spectrum and even though you sided with the umbilical cord not being cut immediately, you left the reader room for them to decide on their own as to which one they preferred. I also liked that you added a bit of experiential side to your academic project by informing a mother and a mother-to-be about the cutting of the umbilical cord and I think their responses summed up how the common people in this country think.
Your project was important to me because I consider myself above what I describe to be as the common people, yet I did not know about the risks and benefits of cutting the umbilical cord at different times. If I ever plan on having kids, I will definitely think about this and instruct my partner’s OB/GYN to cut the umbilical cord after a couple of minutes. And when s/he is cutting the cord, or if get to cut the cord, I might be thinking of you and your project. And to stick in someone’s memory as an influential person, especially in mine, is a true accomplishment. Good Job.
I think your speech was best in the class and I feel bad for the people who did not get to hear it. Your props with Stewie and the model placenta were very creative. Keep up the good work and make sure you make SoF proud when you’re in Cornell.
For Sarah Tornay (Writing Group)
Sarah,
In your project you decided to research about the risks of VBACs and a mother doing a C-Section every time she gives birth. You used a lot of statistics to back up your main idea and successfully informed the reader (me) on what the risks are of a VBAC and “once a C-Section, always a C-Section”.
I liked that you focused on something that is extremely controversial which drew me in when I started reading your blog post. I also liked that you used many statistical evidence to argue the risks and advantages of both VBACs and C-Section-every-time deliveries. Your project is important to me because it informed me on subjects I had little prior knowledge about. Now I will be able to argue with “educated” folk about which is more dangerous.
To make your project better, I would make it clearer as to what VBAC stands for. You mentioned it in the post, but I don’t think it was clear enough. I knew what it meant because I read Tina Cassidy’s “Birth” but the common people might be confused or lost and as what the common people do when they are confused, they stop. You don’t want your reader to stop reading your paper or read your entire paper while confused.
All in all, a good post. An advice for the next project you do; try and do something experiential so you feel as if you are physically active with your project instead of just doing it for a class grade.
For Johnny (Writing Group)
Johnny,
In your project you decided to look at alternatives of raising a child. The two alternatives you chose to look at were abortion and adoption.
I liked that for your project, you did not just use a random source from the internet. You actually read a book and gathered evidence to support your argument. Most high school teenagers wouldn’t do that.
To make your project better, I would suggest you use your words carefully. I know that sounds mean but I mean it in the kindest way possible. In your post you used the phrase, “kill the baby”, that is a heavy line. Abortion is a very delicate and controversial topic and like Andy said, “always talk about abortion as if someone in the room has had one.”
-----------------------------------------------
From Mentor (Father)
I am glad you selected a topic from which you are learning about birth process, it was most appealing to me that your instinct motivated you to visit the PATH in the Bronx. I liked your interest as you mentioned "The lack of information on PATH made it even more important for me to visit them." In fact most of the researchers get their information from primary sources and you hit the right place.
I would suggest you do not limit yourself questioning only one person who definitely has good amount of information, few mothers in PATH or any other place could be your good source of information. If they allow, you should try to get more information from PATH mothers. It is always better to develop a sound questionnaire to collect data/information so that you can collect some quantifiable data with some open ended questions.
At the end, I must say you gathered some valuable information which may lead you to further explore on the topic. Well done, all the best.
From Protege (Davendra)
I like how you obtained your information. The fact that you actually went to the organization themselves, and interviewed Mr.C shows a good dedication to your work. Also your getting more in depth info than what you can find around. I my self have never been in the situation of these mothers, however I imagine that it is not a great situation. I believe what PATH is doing is great because there are many in that type of situation, that can be assisted and inspired by what PATH does.
------------------------------------------------
From Devin (Classmate)
You asked yourself what the government does to help poverty stricken pregnant women in New York City and then you visited an office in the Bronx of an organization called PATH, which you found out a little about online.
I really liked the way you describe the look and feeling of the office at the entrance making the point of how unwelcoming it must be to a poor pregnant woman coming there. But then you contrast this with the happy looking women who were staying there, making it seem like a good place overall. It seemed amazing when Mr.C said that PATH has an 100% success rate helping mothers to support themselves finnancially and not need temporary housing again.
The work PATH does is really important. These are babies, ones born to poor single moms, who are most likely to drop out of school and not have a chance of making a good life for themselves. They need to be brought into the society not made to feel like outcasts.
Myy only suggestion would have to be to ask what kind of jobs the mothers got so that they could be independent and not need temporary housing. But maybe he would not have wanted a direct question like that. I think you did a great job describing this visit and making it interesting.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
HW 42 - Culminating Birth Project
To enhance my understanding of the whole topic of birth, and most things related to birth, I decided to research about poverty stricken mothers in NYC. I focused on pregnant women more than just mothers in general so it would further connect to the Birth unit. More specifically, I focused on what the government is doing to help the pregnant women. Before starting any research, I hypothesized that the government is providing special shelters dedicated just for pregnant women, equipped to handle all the needs of the pregnant women which, in my opinion, are greater than those of the common homeless people.
While researching, I set the search parameters to NYC only because I wanted to find a place that was accessible to me because I wanted to make this project a physical experience. I came across the website, NYC Homeless Services, which educated me about an organization called PATH. There isn’t too much information on PATH online, which is understandable since most of the people interested in PATH do not have access to the internet. The lack of information on PATH made it even more important for me to visit them.
PATH stands for Prevention Assistance for Temporary Housing. The office I visited is in the Bronx on Powers Avenue and 141st street. I did not think the neighborhood the office was located in was very friendly and inviting especially considering the fact that the people going to the office are emotionally stressed and at least the staff members could make it more scenic than it is right now. However; my opinion was probably just biased because it was raining the day I visited the office.
The second I walked in through the sliding entrance doors, I was greeted with a large sign titled: RULES. I started reading from Number 1 because I was determined not to break any rules as to create the best example of myself and SoF. The last rule on the list read; No Cameras or Documentation of Any Sort. I felt a little disheartened but I was still motivated enough to move on and find my interviewee. The room adjacent to the welcome room was 90% filled up by a very intimidating metal detector. The whole time I searched my pockets for anything metal, I thought of how a mother seeking refuge there might feel. The place was certainly very secure since they led me to wonder whether if an unfortunate incident had occurred.
The guard in charge of the metal detector immediately ceased my camera and gave me a token. The reason they gave me for no cameras was that they had to protect the anonymity of their clients. But I could not help but wonder if they had a darker ulterior motive. The guards and visitors all gave me questioning looks and one guard asked whether I was lost or not. I told them why I was there and they all looked quite impressed and they all directed me to the front desk where I met my interviewee.
Mr. C, who chose to be anonymous, but consented to being called Mr. C, worked in the registration department of PATH and agreed to answer my questions as long as I did not ask to reveal any personal information of the mothers. He led me to his office that is on the second floor of the three story building. As I walked through following Mr. C, I looked around and saw many women that were pregnant and some women with infants or toddlers. They all looked happy. That was a good sign.
The second floor looked a lot less friendly than the first floor. This is probably because only one wing on the second have women living there. Mr. C's office was surprisingly spacious. I did not expect a government social worker to have an office that size. My first question to him was whether he minded if I recorded the interview, he hesitated, but gave his consent.
Here follows the list of questions I asked him and his (paraphrased) responses:
What is the first thing that a woman has to do when she comes to PATH?
We ask her to take a pregnancy test and if she is pregnant. While she waits for the results, she fills out a form that has 10 questions mostly about her past.If the pregnancy test is a positive, we refer her to an OB/GYN and then the hospital sends her back to PATH after they're done with all of their tests. The mother stays in PATH until her application has been processed and once it has been, we send her to a shelter that suits her needs.
What are some of the factors that make a woman ineligible fr a place in a shelter?
If she has a close family member that is financially stable and willing to support her, if her bank account records are decent, or if the father is able to look after her and the baby, we tell the mother that she is not eligible.
How long does it take for a mother to move into a shelter from when she enters PATH?
Around 6 hours
How many women do you have to process on an annual basis?
Hundreds! Thousands!
Can you give me a rough estimate?
Around 1500 or so...
What are some of the services that pregnant women that come to PATH receive?
Every pregnant woman has to take mandatory birthing classes at their designated shelters. Also, depending on how far they are in their pregnancy, they either attend a school where they learn skills to utilize after they leave the shelter, or we place them in a job in which they can use their skills to earn a decent salary with which she can sustain her and her baby. Our goal at PATH s to prevent mothers from living in a shelter for an extensive period of time. We aim at helping them out at a tough point in their lives so when they move on, they will not need any financial support. It's in our name, Prevention Assistance of Temporary Housing. We try and prevent the women from needing temporary housing ever again in their lives.
What is PATH's success rate when it comes to helping mothers lead a better life after they leave the shelter?
100%. No doubt about it. I am still in contact with some mothers who were desperate for help and now they live a happy life with more kids and some even have a loving husband our boyfriend.
What are the different birthing procedure you guys here at PATH follow?
We have never had a birth here in the center and as far as I know, we have never had a woman give birth at any of the shelters either. We always take them to a hospital. The pregnant women shelters are all strategically situated so the mothers can be taken to a hospital as soon as her water breaks.
(I wanted to tell him that taking a mother to a hospital when her water breaks is not the best thing to do but I digressed)
Why don't you guys look into home birth?
There are a lot of issues when it comes to home birth because we'll have to consider the mother's religion. Their family's religion. We find it easier if we just stay out of all those hassles.
With that question, I had to conclude that interview because the people at the front desk needed him for something. He gave me a couple of brochures and pamphlets that according to him would help me learn more about what exactly PATH does for homeless mothers. I think my visit to PATH was very educational and informative and I wish I could have interviewed one of the mothers living there. I think I would have been able to learn a lot more if I had multiple points of view on the topic Alas, I have to respect that agreement that PATH signed with the mothers about not giving up the mothers' identities to the public.
While researching, I set the search parameters to NYC only because I wanted to find a place that was accessible to me because I wanted to make this project a physical experience. I came across the website, NYC Homeless Services, which educated me about an organization called PATH. There isn’t too much information on PATH online, which is understandable since most of the people interested in PATH do not have access to the internet. The lack of information on PATH made it even more important for me to visit them.
PATH stands for Prevention Assistance for Temporary Housing. The office I visited is in the Bronx on Powers Avenue and 141st street. I did not think the neighborhood the office was located in was very friendly and inviting especially considering the fact that the people going to the office are emotionally stressed and at least the staff members could make it more scenic than it is right now. However; my opinion was probably just biased because it was raining the day I visited the office.
The second I walked in through the sliding entrance doors, I was greeted with a large sign titled: RULES. I started reading from Number 1 because I was determined not to break any rules as to create the best example of myself and SoF. The last rule on the list read; No Cameras or Documentation of Any Sort. I felt a little disheartened but I was still motivated enough to move on and find my interviewee. The room adjacent to the welcome room was 90% filled up by a very intimidating metal detector. The whole time I searched my pockets for anything metal, I thought of how a mother seeking refuge there might feel. The place was certainly very secure since they led me to wonder whether if an unfortunate incident had occurred.
The guard in charge of the metal detector immediately ceased my camera and gave me a token. The reason they gave me for no cameras was that they had to protect the anonymity of their clients. But I could not help but wonder if they had a darker ulterior motive. The guards and visitors all gave me questioning looks and one guard asked whether I was lost or not. I told them why I was there and they all looked quite impressed and they all directed me to the front desk where I met my interviewee.
Mr. C, who chose to be anonymous, but consented to being called Mr. C, worked in the registration department of PATH and agreed to answer my questions as long as I did not ask to reveal any personal information of the mothers. He led me to his office that is on the second floor of the three story building. As I walked through following Mr. C, I looked around and saw many women that were pregnant and some women with infants or toddlers. They all looked happy. That was a good sign.
The second floor looked a lot less friendly than the first floor. This is probably because only one wing on the second have women living there. Mr. C's office was surprisingly spacious. I did not expect a government social worker to have an office that size. My first question to him was whether he minded if I recorded the interview, he hesitated, but gave his consent.
Here follows the list of questions I asked him and his (paraphrased) responses:
What is the first thing that a woman has to do when she comes to PATH?
We ask her to take a pregnancy test and if she is pregnant. While she waits for the results, she fills out a form that has 10 questions mostly about her past.If the pregnancy test is a positive, we refer her to an OB/GYN and then the hospital sends her back to PATH after they're done with all of their tests. The mother stays in PATH until her application has been processed and once it has been, we send her to a shelter that suits her needs.
What are some of the factors that make a woman ineligible fr a place in a shelter?
If she has a close family member that is financially stable and willing to support her, if her bank account records are decent, or if the father is able to look after her and the baby, we tell the mother that she is not eligible.
How long does it take for a mother to move into a shelter from when she enters PATH?
Around 6 hours
How many women do you have to process on an annual basis?
Hundreds! Thousands!
Can you give me a rough estimate?
Around 1500 or so...
What are some of the services that pregnant women that come to PATH receive?
Every pregnant woman has to take mandatory birthing classes at their designated shelters. Also, depending on how far they are in their pregnancy, they either attend a school where they learn skills to utilize after they leave the shelter, or we place them in a job in which they can use their skills to earn a decent salary with which she can sustain her and her baby. Our goal at PATH s to prevent mothers from living in a shelter for an extensive period of time. We aim at helping them out at a tough point in their lives so when they move on, they will not need any financial support. It's in our name, Prevention Assistance of Temporary Housing. We try and prevent the women from needing temporary housing ever again in their lives.
What is PATH's success rate when it comes to helping mothers lead a better life after they leave the shelter?
100%. No doubt about it. I am still in contact with some mothers who were desperate for help and now they live a happy life with more kids and some even have a loving husband our boyfriend.
What are the different birthing procedure you guys here at PATH follow?
We have never had a birth here in the center and as far as I know, we have never had a woman give birth at any of the shelters either. We always take them to a hospital. The pregnant women shelters are all strategically situated so the mothers can be taken to a hospital as soon as her water breaks.
(I wanted to tell him that taking a mother to a hospital when her water breaks is not the best thing to do but I digressed)
Why don't you guys look into home birth?
There are a lot of issues when it comes to home birth because we'll have to consider the mother's religion. Their family's religion. We find it easier if we just stay out of all those hassles.
With that question, I had to conclude that interview because the people at the front desk needed him for something. He gave me a couple of brochures and pamphlets that according to him would help me learn more about what exactly PATH does for homeless mothers. I think my visit to PATH was very educational and informative and I wish I could have interviewed one of the mothers living there. I think I would have been able to learn a lot more if I had multiple points of view on the topic Alas, I have to respect that agreement that PATH signed with the mothers about not giving up the mothers' identities to the public.
Friday, April 1, 2011
HW 41 - Independent Research
Olda, Regin. "Single Mothers and Poverty." Single Mothers and Poverty n. pag. Web. 1 Apr 2011. <http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/content/CFW/Publications/pdfs/mapagendaforaction.pdf >
Countless statistical evidence stating the difficulty single mothers face when they have no support from their families and it is up to them to raise their child or give birth to their child. This PDF also goes in depth about a lot of policies in Montgomery that were put in place to help the single mothers or mothers-to-be become more successful, not just for themselves, but also for their children.
Baer, Kathryn. "How Much Does Single-Mother Poverty Cost Our Nation?." Poverty & Policy (2011): n. pag. Web. 1 Apr 2011. < http://povertyandpolicy.wordpress.com/2011/02/24/how-much-does-single-mother-poverty-cost-our-nation/>
At the beginning of the 2010 fiscal year, 4% of our GDP was spent on helping single mothers or what seems the more politically correct term, “father absence” families/. The money went into programs that provide shelters, education, jobs, and communal support to single mother. The article starts out by talking about how important it is to have a baby born in the right environment with the right people but it somehow drifts off to talk about left wing political policies versus right wing political policies. If one was keen on learning about single mothers, he or she should read the article half way and then just read the last paragraph. Many of the body paragraphs in this article are just political hokum.
Paltrow, Lynn. "Too poor to procreate: How the Monroe County Court Opinion in In the Matter of Bobbijean P. furthers the rational of service cuts to poor families and fails to advance the welfare of children." National Advocates for Pregnant Women (2004): n. pag. Web. 1 Apr 2011. < http://advocatesforpregnantwomen.org/issues/procreation_penalties/too_poor_to_procreate_how_the_monroe_county_court_opinion_in_in_the_matter_of_bobbijean_p_furthers_the_rational_of_service_cuts_to_poor_families_and_fails_to_advance_the_welfare_of_children.php >.
United States. Family Services. New York City: , 2009. Web. 1 Apr 2011. < http://www.nyc.gov/html/dhs/html/homeless/famserv.shtml >.
B. For the culminating project, I plan on heading down to the homeless pregnant or homeless mothers shelter and walk around and talk to people there. I think it will be a truly authentic experience. I will try to see if I can help some of the workers there. I also plan on taking lots of pictures and writing a full analysis on what I saw and what I did in the shelter.
Paltrow, Lynn. "Too poor to procreate: How the Monroe County Court Opinion in In the Matter of Bobbijean P. furthers the rational of service cuts to poor families and fails to advance the welfare of children." National Advocates for Pregnant Women (2004): n. pag. Web. 1 Apr 2011. < http://advocatesforpregnantwomen.org/issues/procreation_penalties/too_poor_to_procreate_how_the_monroe_county_court_opinion_in_in_the_matter_of_bobbijean_p_furthers_the_rational_of_service_cuts_to_poor_families_and_fails_to_advance_the_welfare_of_children.php >.
The government has labeled some parents “too poor” to procreate. This is a very controversial issue because it breaks numerous “freedom amendments”. The government program, which was left nameless in the article, seeks out parents whose records show drug abuse and minimum wage income as unfit parents. Studies have shown that many families that are currently living with welfare are usually the ones who develop drug problems. The nameless government program also seeks out women, who are pregnant and their medical and/or financial record deems them unfit to have a child, and forces them to give up their baby for adoption or foster care.
Ann, Crittenden. "MOTHERS ECONOMIC ABCs."Myth of The Work/Family Balance n. pag. Web. 1 Apr 2011. < http://www.mothersoughttohaveequalrights.org/content/view/94/>.
Ann, Crittenden. "MOTHERS ECONOMIC ABCs."Myth of The Work/Family Balance n. pag. Web. 1 Apr 2011. < http://www.mothersoughttohaveequalrights.org/content/view/94/>.
Many stories about poor single mothers and how they faced their challenges and how some mother overcame those challenges. Many reference links to potential programs that aim to help poverty stricken single mothers. I found that that website has a very interactive community that genuinely seem to want to help mothers-to-be that are in need.
United States. Family Services. New York City: , 2009. Web. 1 Apr 2011. < http://www.nyc.gov/html/dhs/html/homeless/famserv.shtml >.
Provides services for homeless pregnant women (and homeless mothers) which include shelter and nutritional sustenance so their baby can be born healthy. The websites highlights the requirements one needs to meet to be eligible for the services and also where and how they can receive the services. In my opinion, this is my best source of evidence because it is very simple. It gives clear instructions as to what a mother or a mother-to-be should do without any of the “keep your chin up” nonsense.
B. For the culminating project, I plan on heading down to the homeless pregnant or homeless mothers shelter and walk around and talk to people there. I think it will be a truly authentic experience. I will try to see if I can help some of the workers there. I also plan on taking lots of pictures and writing a full analysis on what I saw and what I did in the shelter.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
HW 40 - Insights from Book - Part 3
Hey! You’re Tina Cassidy right? Oh my god! I can’t believe it’s actually you! Thanks for writing Birth: The Surprising History of How We Are Born. Your entire book supported the argument that home birth or birth at a birthing center is a much better alternative than hospital birth which made me decide where I would want my child to be born. My SAT tutor made fun me when I told him my history class about birth but when I explained to him how intricate your book is how you take the reader through a journey depicting how society has stigmatized birth to be something like a disease instead of a miraculous and beautiful part of life. It surprised me that there are so many things about birth that I did not know prior to reading your book.
"Really, which parts were most effective or important for you?"
The duties of the father chapter, which started on page 198 I believe, was simply fabulous. It gave me a proper idea as to what I can do when I am a father. The part I found most interesting was about how the role some fathers play can affect how painless the birthing process can be for the mother and the child. Just being there for emotional support can mean so much more to the mother than when the father just sits in the waiting room. It was also very interesting to learn about how other cultures and how our culture in another time periods felt about the father being in the delivery room. I think that was around pages 206-211, but I’m not sure. I found your sub-chapter on couvade syndrome fascinating, which I distinctly remember to be page 210 because I had it bookmarked. I find the concept of a father feeling similar symptoms as the mother during the birthing process very interesting and I wonder if I will ever experience something similar. I think your book is just fascinating and I bet it educated a lot of the common people to be somewhat more learned about the world around them.
"But what could I have done to make this a better book - that would more effectively fulfill its mission?"
Oh man… There are almost no flaws in this book but one thing that stuck out to me when reading was that the book seemed one sided. I felt as if you used a lot of statistical evidence to prove your point but the context of the evidence wasn’t the same. For example, when you were talking about maternal death rates, you compared evidence from a small town doctor hundreds of years ago to modern government issued to evidence. I thought that to be a little iffy. If you ever right a new book or revise this book, I think you should change some of the sources you used as evidence. But I don't want you to feel like I'm criticizing. I appreciate the immense amount of labor you dedicated to this important issue and particularly for making me think about how society has changed from thinking birth is a miracle to stigmatizing birth by introducing modern techniques and interventions. Before reading your book, I had no idea as to what a birthing center was or what midwives were and now that I am more aware of today’s industrialized hospital system, I am definitely going to try and urge my future partner to give birth either at home or in a birthing center.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
HW 39 - Insights from Book - Part 2
MLA Citation: Cassidy, Tina. Birth: The Surprising History of How We Are Born . 1. Grove Press, 2007. Print.
Just like every book and movie, the book had much more details about everything the movie discussed plus some additional information. One example of the additional information is: The historical aspects that surround birth and how homo sapiens have presumably changed from how they used to give birth to how they give birth now. The difference in diets between the first homo sapiens and the modern day woman plays a big role as to how their pelvises were and are shaped. One example of something that “The Business of Being Born” treated differently was that the movie started with some of the positive aspects of birth in hospitals. Some women in the intro said something along the lines of, “you go in and you come out”. Even though there was a lot of corny music playing in the background which degraded those women’s opinions, the movie still had some positives to say about birth in hospital while the book was completely biased about how birth should be handled the “natural” way. To sum it up, the book, Birth, had a lot more historical references that predates modern equipments (ie: forceps, sutures, fetal heart rate monitors) while the movie only discusses what happened in the past 100 years or so and all of its evidences are from statistics or stories that were passed down.
I felt as if the book’s major insight in the mosh-pit of historical evidence was; how midwives struggled through the obnoxiousness of male doctors throughout history to get to the respected position they are at now. Another key insight was; over the course of recent history (100-150 years) doctors have had far less successful delivers compared midwives. This is of course relative to the ratio of women that went to “professional” doctor and to those that had midwives come to them. I personally believe that the stigmatization of midwives is mostly because midwives were women. I think if the first publicized midwives had picked a better name to represent themselves, they would have had much more success with the male dominated world of obstetricians. As for the second possible insight of the book, it is quite obvious as to why doctor have less successful deliveries than midwives. The doctors have no emotional attachment or any sentimental connection with the baby or the mother. Before lawsuits became popular, doctors probably didn’t even care if the baby had lived or died just as long they got paid.
Interesting Aspects of Pregnancy:
1. History of the caesarean section and where it is practiced (103)
2. Too Posh To Push (123)
3. Different types of forceps throughout history (168)
4. Optimal labor positions (181)
5. A father's duties (198)
Independent Research:
Throughout the book Cassidy gives a biased perspective on how home birth is better than hospital birth. I wanted to research more about that issue because that seems to be the main discourse in relation to birth.
"... studies have suggested that planned home birth may be safe and with less interventions than planned hospital birth." (Olsen, Jewell) This statement agrees with the claims by Cassidy in Birth. I am inclined to agree with this statement because it looks at both planned hospital birth and planned home birth. Most hospital births are usually emergencies where the mom gets rushed into the OR for a C-Section just after she heard that her water just broke. "Planned hospital birth may even increase unnecessary interventions and complications without any benefit for low-risk women." People rush to the hospital because it symbolizes a sense of safety which gives people the illusion that if you are in a hospital, you are safe. At least that is what the common people think. That is why it is not surprising that scholars and individuals with college level education prefer using a midwife than an OB/GYN.
Olsen O, Jewell D. Home versus hospital birth. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 1998, Issue 3. Art. No.: CD000352. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD000352
Just like every book and movie, the book had much more details about everything the movie discussed plus some additional information. One example of the additional information is: The historical aspects that surround birth and how homo sapiens have presumably changed from how they used to give birth to how they give birth now. The difference in diets between the first homo sapiens and the modern day woman plays a big role as to how their pelvises were and are shaped. One example of something that “The Business of Being Born” treated differently was that the movie started with some of the positive aspects of birth in hospitals. Some women in the intro said something along the lines of, “you go in and you come out”. Even though there was a lot of corny music playing in the background which degraded those women’s opinions, the movie still had some positives to say about birth in hospital while the book was completely biased about how birth should be handled the “natural” way. To sum it up, the book, Birth, had a lot more historical references that predates modern equipments (ie: forceps, sutures, fetal heart rate monitors) while the movie only discusses what happened in the past 100 years or so and all of its evidences are from statistics or stories that were passed down.
I felt as if the book’s major insight in the mosh-pit of historical evidence was; how midwives struggled through the obnoxiousness of male doctors throughout history to get to the respected position they are at now. Another key insight was; over the course of recent history (100-150 years) doctors have had far less successful delivers compared midwives. This is of course relative to the ratio of women that went to “professional” doctor and to those that had midwives come to them. I personally believe that the stigmatization of midwives is mostly because midwives were women. I think if the first publicized midwives had picked a better name to represent themselves, they would have had much more success with the male dominated world of obstetricians. As for the second possible insight of the book, it is quite obvious as to why doctor have less successful deliveries than midwives. The doctors have no emotional attachment or any sentimental connection with the baby or the mother. Before lawsuits became popular, doctors probably didn’t even care if the baby had lived or died just as long they got paid.
Interesting Aspects of Pregnancy:
1. History of the caesarean section and where it is practiced (103)
2. Too Posh To Push (123)
3. Different types of forceps throughout history (168)
4. Optimal labor positions (181)
5. A father's duties (198)
Independent Research:
Throughout the book Cassidy gives a biased perspective on how home birth is better than hospital birth. I wanted to research more about that issue because that seems to be the main discourse in relation to birth.
"... studies have suggested that planned home birth may be safe and with less interventions than planned hospital birth." (Olsen, Jewell) This statement agrees with the claims by Cassidy in Birth. I am inclined to agree with this statement because it looks at both planned hospital birth and planned home birth. Most hospital births are usually emergencies where the mom gets rushed into the OR for a C-Section just after she heard that her water just broke. "Planned hospital birth may even increase unnecessary interventions and complications without any benefit for low-risk women." People rush to the hospital because it symbolizes a sense of safety which gives people the illusion that if you are in a hospital, you are safe. At least that is what the common people think. That is why it is not surprising that scholars and individuals with college level education prefer using a midwife than an OB/GYN.
Olsen O, Jewell D. Home versus hospital birth. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 1998, Issue 3. Art. No.: CD000352. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD000352
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
HW 38 - Insights from pregnancy & birth book - part 1
"The Surprising History of How We Are Born: Birth" by Tina Cassidy
How is the book organized?
In the introduction chapter of "Birth", Cassidy discussed how her experiences while she was pregnant mixed with stories she heard from her friends influenced her to write this book. From chapter one on, the book is very heavy on facts derived from personal stories and other primary and secondary sources such as history books.
Essential Question:
From what I have read so far, the question Cassidy wants to be able to answer, not necessarily with this book, is; How is it that "...we can touch the moon and predict the weather, map the human genetic code and clone animals, digitize a photograph and send it from Tokyo to Tehran with the touch of a button, but we can’t figure out how to give birth that is --simultaneously and constantly--safe minimally painful, joyful and close to natures design."?
- No one can really answer that question, but if I were to theorize, I would say it is because the human race is the most fit to progress in this world and the universe knew this when it created us, hence, the universe decided to give us a harder time when reproducing. Why? Maybe so we don't "breed like rabbits" and soon run out of resources to sustain our population yet all the other types of animals on the planet.
Major Insight:
I think the major insight that Cassidy tried to convey was the importance of midwifery in our society and how it isn't given enough attention.
Everyone needs help. No matter how experienced or confident you are at doing something, a little useful advice or a general push in the right direction never hurts. Some first time mothers may be skeptical at the idea of just one midwife being able to help her through this strenuous process and may eventually give in to the industrialized system of today's hospitals. Most common people would do this. Only people who are educated and well informed on how pregnant women are treated in hospitals will choose the natural and traditional process which is; being surrounded by their loved ones and a midwife who helps her through every step of the way.
Evidence Convincing?
I think the evidence is very convincing since Cassidy uses various primary sources such as stories from mothers who gave birth in hospitals, birthing centers, and at home. This helps the reader, it helped me, get a wider perspective on the whole birthing process and helped me see the pros and cons of every method or location. The author also used historical data to give threaders insights on how the common diet affect a woman's pregnancy. So far, I think the book is very convincing but I look forward to learning more about the pros of child birth in hospitals since that is he most common form of gin birth nowadays and so far in the book, Cassidy has only focused on the cons.
How is the book organized?
In the introduction chapter of "Birth", Cassidy discussed how her experiences while she was pregnant mixed with stories she heard from her friends influenced her to write this book. From chapter one on, the book is very heavy on facts derived from personal stories and other primary and secondary sources such as history books.
Essential Question:
From what I have read so far, the question Cassidy wants to be able to answer, not necessarily with this book, is; How is it that "...we can touch the moon and predict the weather, map the human genetic code and clone animals, digitize a photograph and send it from Tokyo to Tehran with the touch of a button, but we can’t figure out how to give birth that is --simultaneously and constantly--safe minimally painful, joyful and close to natures design."?
- No one can really answer that question, but if I were to theorize, I would say it is because the human race is the most fit to progress in this world and the universe knew this when it created us, hence, the universe decided to give us a harder time when reproducing. Why? Maybe so we don't "breed like rabbits" and soon run out of resources to sustain our population yet all the other types of animals on the planet.
Major Insight:
I think the major insight that Cassidy tried to convey was the importance of midwifery in our society and how it isn't given enough attention.
Everyone needs help. No matter how experienced or confident you are at doing something, a little useful advice or a general push in the right direction never hurts. Some first time mothers may be skeptical at the idea of just one midwife being able to help her through this strenuous process and may eventually give in to the industrialized system of today's hospitals. Most common people would do this. Only people who are educated and well informed on how pregnant women are treated in hospitals will choose the natural and traditional process which is; being surrounded by their loved ones and a midwife who helps her through every step of the way.
Evidence Convincing?
I think the evidence is very convincing since Cassidy uses various primary sources such as stories from mothers who gave birth in hospitals, birthing centers, and at home. This helps the reader, it helped me, get a wider perspective on the whole birthing process and helped me see the pros and cons of every method or location. The author also used historical data to give threaders insights on how the common diet affect a woman's pregnancy. So far, I think the book is very convincing but I look forward to learning more about the pros of child birth in hospitals since that is he most common form of gin birth nowadays and so far in the book, Cassidy has only focused on the cons.
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