Safety Measures in Using a Fetal Heart Monitor
Perhaps for most mothers pregnancy is one of the most “vital” phase of their lives. It determines their divine capability to carry a life in their own body, to fulfill God’s mandate to go forth and multiply. Pregnancy also boosts a woman’s self-esteem; it gives a sense of assurance that you are normal, and you can function as a woman, as a wife, and soon, as a mother. Lastly, pregnancy compels you to partake in the eternal process of Life in the world that you are living in. Who knows but the baby inside your womb could be the next liberator of your country, the hero of the new millennium, the next pope, or just an ordinary person who excels in his God-given skills and who brings about change in his own little way.
Yet, pregnancy is very crucial, dangerous and worrisome. Parents who are about to have a baby should not be blamed if they cannot sleep every night, cannot eat properly, and cannot function normally― anxious that any wrong move is detrimental to their baby’s health. They choke at the thought of having an impaired child due to any early unresolved complications, of having a son or a daughter handicapped by their own reckless fault. For these reasons, many couples tend to regularly consult their doctors to inquire and ensure their baby’s safety. To check the health of the fetus, most doctors use devices which monitor the heart rate of the baby to observe any distress in the womb: the fetal heart rate monitors.
Fetal heart monitors come in different forms and methods. The measurement can be done inside the uterus (internal monitoring) or outside of the body (external monitoring). Internal monitoring is the invasive method of observing the heartbeat of the child. One procedure of conducting this test is the scalp test. Meanwhile, external monitoring involves different gadgets that need not be invasive, like fetoscope, baby Doppler heart rate monitor, non-stress and contraction tests. Some of these are being sold for home use, especially the fetal Doppler monitors.
But the bigger question lies in the safety of using these devices, either for clinic or home use. Can pregnant mothers assure themselves that they can pass through this vital and crucial phase in their life without compromising their own health and safety?
Actually, there are different safety measures that should be applied and taken into consideration when using any of these monitors. People, even the medical professionals, should first ascertain the safety of the baby and of the mother in operating these procedures.
- First, make sure that the fetal heart monitor came from a respectable, authorized and reliable manufacturer. Be careful of products that have no labels and no permit of production from the government. These could fall short by providing wrong information that will only heighten the tension and cause further damage.
- Also, read the procedure and specifications for operating the machine. These bits of information are included in the package for you to read and understand, and not just as a space filler to do away with white empty spaces in the label. Do follow the step-by-step procedure in operating these machines. Never follow your instinct; always base your every move on the instructions provided.
- Read and understand some articles about interpreting fetal heart monitor strips. Through this, you won’t be ignorant about what the operator or your doctor tells you.
- Lay down in your most comfortable position. Never allow any stress-causing posture that might injure and deprive your child of oxygen
- Finally, only operate these procedures under the guideline of a bona fide medical practitioner with an expertise in this field. A fetal heart monitor could be tricky, that’s why it needs none but only the experts in this matter.