This might be a little TMI so if it is, I'm sorry, but I have been ranting about it for weeks and I think it's also kind of funny, so here we go. Before I start this though, I'm going to try and be as sensitive to the gender aspect as I can, but please forgive me if I slip up with that.
One of the things you'll know if you have been pregnant is the sheer amount of times you are asked to pee in a pot and hand it over. It happens A LOT. Now, I know there are good reasons for this and that it's not for the good of the medical professionals performing the test but actual for the expectant parent and the baby or babies that they are carrying, but it's awkward because sample pots were not designed for women/ those of us without a penis. They're about an inch to an inch and a half in diameter at the top, so even at the earliest points of pregnancy it can be difficult to pee into a pot of that size. By the time you get to the stage where you have a bump, it can feel next to impossible. And it is literally every time you see a midwife or go into the triage unit or any of the other antenatal appointments that you need to attend as it's part of observations. It's blood pressure and heart rate, and a check on urine for proteins, ketones and other markers which indicate the body isn't getting sufficient nutrients (because of morning sickness, for example) or that the expectant parent has an infection which could affect the baby.
One solution to this is to pee into something else, whether that be something like a paper drinks cup (my go to in the antenatal clinic) or a hair dye bowl (the option I use when I'm doing a sample at home, or even a paper sick bowl (hospital when there is no other option) and tip it into the sample pot, so that there is plenty in there to be tested, it doesn't get all over the outside of it and also so I don't have to struggle with it.
Today (drafting day, not posting day, as usual) was quite amusing though because I had to attend a growth scan to see how my little boy is doing and check that he's growing okay, and the problem was as soon as we arrived in the hospital and had waddled (well, I waddled like a fat bottomed goose, my partner walked like his normal self) to the scanning department I needed to pee. The actual scan doesn't take that long, though waiting for it can be a bit lengthy, and once done we had to go around to antenatal. Knowing that they were going to ask for a sample, my partner went around to the antenatal unit first to get a sample pot for me so that I could do that bit when I already needed to go to the bathroom rather than waiting until I got to antenatal and effectively had to force myself to pee.
When the midwife asked for my sample I told her that I was terrible at aiming and she mentioned that sometimes the midwives are testing off of drops so it was fine, and I pointed out that it would be useful to ask the scanning department if they would have sample pots on their reception desk for the pregnant women coming in for scans, because it would make it a lot easier. (The visual reminder of them being there at the first part of your appointment would likely be helpful to more people than just me.) My partner also pointed out that for the first two scans, I had to have a full bladder, and once I had had the scan I had to run straight to the bathroom and there was no way I could have made it around to the antenatal clinic first, before being able to go for a pee. They asked why I'd never mentioned it before, though it seemed to be in a jokey way and the doctor did say it was a good idea and worth looking into.
Is it going to make a big difference? To some degree, no, and for anyone who attends the clinic having never known it any other way, it's probably not going to be something they even notice, but there are a lot of things like that which can be done to make life easier without having to be redesigning how things are done or remaking things where it would be expensive to do it. (Let's face it, it would be expensive to have a pot designed for women/ people who lack of the equipment with which to aim, to produce and distribute it etc and it would likely be pink and subject to the pink tax.)
There are a lot of issues in maternity services, and a lot of things which just could be done better, but sometimes it only takes making a suggestion or saying something for a change to be made and life to be a little bit easier.
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