Shanghai doctors use paper, sign language to deliver baby

A paper used during the labor process tells the patient about the beginning of the procedure and how to cooperate with doctors. [Photo/thepaper.cn]

Labor pain is one of the most unbearable experiences in the world so many women take the help of doctors to get through the ordeal. But how do doctors guide and instruct a woman who cannot speak or hear? Well, doctors in Shanghai found an answer that's not exactly pathbreaking, but nevertheless effective.

At 7:44 pm on Sept 20, the staff of Obstetrics & Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University successfully helped a 30-year-old deaf-mute woman give birth to a girl by writing down all encouraging words and instructions on paper, thepaper.cn reported on Thursday.

The paper carries instructions about the labor process. [Photo/thepaper.cn]

The patient was admitted in the morning, but her inability to convey her feelings or hear the doctors made the labor process difficult both for her and the staff. What made it even more painful was that she had lumbar operations twice before, which meant she could not be administered anesthesia as there was a risk of injuring her nerves.

"Painless labor was more dangerous for her. But that meant she had to be tougher in the next 10 or so hours," said Mao Liping, head nurse of the maternity ward, who came up with the idea of using written notes.

"The operation didn't start until she smiled when the anesthetist asked her to cheer up," she said.

The paper highlights the word "push" and uses smaller font size for "when you feel the pain" and "cheer up". [Photo/thepaper.cn]

After 13 hours of efforts by both the woman and the hospital staff, the doctor concluded that the baby would arrive at 7:15 pm, so the staff decided to ask a sign language expert to temporarily join the team. The translator quickly wrote down all the instructions given by midwife Zhou Chunxian, and also explained them through sign language.

Through the whole process, dozens of papers were used to relay the doctors' orders. They even highlighted some words to help the patient understand the procedure.

"Effective communication was the key to the safe delivery of this baby and trust and understanding between the two parts was also indispensable," said Mao.

The paper highlights the word "don't push" and uses smaller font size for "when you don't feel the pain". [Photo/thepaper.cn]