So in the last video we talked about overall systemic solutions.

Now I want to turn our focus to micro solutions.

So ideally we would love to fix the problems in our various healthcare systems

to make things better for our clients.

But in the meantime, individual families are still giving birth in this system. So what are some things that you

can do as a professional to help these individual families navigate this system? So I'm going to give

you five ideas for ways that at the micro level we can empower clients so that they're on a more

level playing

field with their provider.

And that's interview questions, continuity of care, red flags, trust, and communication.

With interview questions, a lot of times when you go to meet a new provider, your goal

should not be to find out if they will support your birth plan.

Your goal should be to find out how they typically practice.

Because even if they are supportive of your birth plan, if it's not in line with the way

that they typically practice, the chances of you actually getting the care that you want

are pretty low.

So one intro when you're going to meet a new provider so you could teach a client how to

talk to a provide about this is to say, I love to ask questions and be involved what's going on.

I love learning. Would you mind telling me about what happens when I go into labor? Can you describe

what it looks like and what I should plan to do at that point when I get to the hospital

and just kind of find out what their typical labor

is like for one of their clients.

...