Hi Yana,
I haven’t heard the name used in conjunction with midwifery. I mentioned this to my wife, who is a paediatrician, and it is apparently a common experience in that field. Often it relates to children with chronic constipation, who can’t be cajoled into altering their dietary or exercise habits so that they might address the problem. It seems the parents just repeatedly bring them to the paediatric clinic expecting someone there to wave a magic wand.
The nearest I could think of in relation to midwifery was one woman who, a number of years ago, had in excess of a dozen admissions during her pregnancy, always for something vague or non-specific or difficult to verify. There were several theories as to why she kept turning up demanding to be admitted. Most leant towards the belief that whatever was wrong with her, it wasn’t a physical matter.
Her history of repeat attendance with symptoms that could neither be confirmed nor denied seems to fit the pattern described by some GPs in relation to this. However, I never heard anyone refer to her as a ‘heartsink’.
Andrew
Dr. Andrew Symon
Senior Lecturer
School of Nursing & Midwifery
University of Dundee
01382 496671
>>> Yana Richens <[log in to unmask]> 09/08/2006 15:26 >>>
Dear List
Has anyone any knowledge of the the term " heart sink" being used in
midwifery, it is a term used in the medical world to describe a patient who makes
frequent visits to a surgery, complaining of persistent unidentifiable ailments"
In midwifery it is my opinion that we have two types of "heartsink" women
and I would like to know if any list members have any thoughts
Many thanks yana
Yana Richens
Consultant Midwife in Public Health and Postnatal Care
University College London Hospital NHS Trust
Elizabeth Garret Anderson & Obstetric Hospital
Huntley Street
London
WC1E 6DH
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