Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: Birth

  • Miracle on Kedvale

    Mary SommersChicago, Illinois, United States Elizabeth enraged her family by falling in love—the wrong thing to do, as far as they were concerned, for a poor girl from a broken home in a small town in Mexico. During a secret courtship, she became pregnant. Elizabeth’s pregnancy added another burden to her family, and they sent…

  • When did you last let your heart decide?

    Sukanya SamChennai, India This woman in labor is not my patient. But the nurses worriedly tell me that the baby’s heartbeat could not be localized. Both handheld Doppler machines had broken down in the labor room unit of our small tertiary hospital. I was the resident on duty. I use the Pinard’s stethoscope, my face…

  • Cultural warfare: investigating childbirth practices in Doctor Zhivago

    Stephanie S. ColelloNew York, United States I was fortunate to spend a year studying the transformation of Russian childbirth practices through the lens of Russian literature—an endeavor that at first glance may seem farfetched. However, I quickly realized that no birth scene is written as a proverbial “island”; often stemming directly from the societal perception…

  • Leaders in the development of Western obstetric practice

    Sara Buck The history of obstetrics contains too many notable figures to simply select six key leaders in its development. However, as Laura Kaplan notes in “Changes in Childbirth in the US,” featured in the current issue, modern obstetrics has been greatly influenced by the invention and modernization of the forceps (Chamberlen and Smellie), the…

  • Forceps: a brief history

    “He’s a little old man very pale of complexion / Into many things makes a narrow inspection / His head’s very long and his hand’s very small” are the mysterious lines that open an anonymous 17th century English poem.1 Often presumed to refer to Hugh Chamberlen the Elder—the last of the famous Huguenot immigrant family…

  • Birth trays in the Italian Renaissance

    Rachel Baker Recurring outbreaks of plague and their resulting demographic catastrophes largely contributed to the Renaissance emphasis on family and procreation. After the initial epidemic in 1348, the plague returned more than a dozen times over the next two centuries. Childbirth was seen as a vital measure to combat plague’s devastation, and a woman’s most…

  • Gynecology and obstetrics

    Matko MarusicCroatia This essay is reprinted from Medicine from Inside (Medicina iznutra) by Matko Marusic, 2006, and translated from Croatian into English by Dr. Mario Malicki. A mountain farmer’s voice reached me from the window of the student hall: “We cannot play on Saturday.” I could not believe it! I had arranged for a soccer…

  • Emotional medicine

    Lauren ForeDominica, West Indies Over the past several months, I have come to the realization that when my role of medical student switches to patient, most of my rational medical knowledge goes out the window. Last month, my husband and I found out that we were expecting our first child. We had just started trying…

  • In the OR

    Kelly KleinMichigan, United States I work at a large teaching hospital as an Emergency Department social worker. It is easy to get lost in a place that large, so I am accustomed to helping people get to various areas of the hospital. But on this day, I was not prepared for the charge nurse’s request…

  • Breastfeeding

    Gloria GrahamRancho Mirage, California, United States Many studies support the importance of breastfeeding in childhood development. The World Health Organization recommends that a child breastfeed for at least two years. The Academy of Pediatrics recommends that all babies, with some exceptions, be exclusively breastfed for about six months and continue breastfeeding with appropriate complementary foods…