2016: Scholarship recipient, MacKenzie Drake at the Ucluelet Secondary School graduation awards ceremony celebrating with Adrienne Mason, Acting Manager of the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust and John McIntosh, from Parks Canada. (photo: Clayoquot Biosphere Trust)
Updates from Heather
December 2019
What a semester of growth! Over the past 3 and a half months, I have attended 23 births and have personally delivered 14 babies. That’s 23 new little lives entering this world; 23 families welcoming a new member, many sleepless nights, almost 100 clinic visits, home visits, driving, more home visits, triage calls, phone calls at midnight and a sleepy partner wishing me luck on my way out the door, as she is woken for a third time that night by my phone ringing.
This semester also included a lot of driving; to the hospital, to home visits, to Calgary for classes and exams. Then there is the hospital parking. If there’s one way hospitals make money, it’s charging students exorbitant parking prices! Also rent, unlike medical school, my program has no subsidy for accommodation. This meant that it was up to me to find accommodation, move, get settled and to absorb those costs. Which brings me to the most important point of all. Which is that my attendance of those 23 babies, would not be possible without the support of the Dick Close Scholarship.
Over the past 3 and a half years I have felt the support of my home community, and of this scholarship. As I reach the end of my time receiving the Dick Close Scholarship, with just one semester left, I am so grateful for the opportunities that have been afforded to me. Come April I will graduate from Mount Royal University with a bachelor’s degree in Midwifery. I intend to use this degree to have the greatest positive impact I can. At 21, I am in a rather unique professional position of being flexible in where I go and what I choose to do with my degree. When I began this degree, I had aspirations of making invaluable contributions to global health. My time in the North West Territories reminded me that I can make valuable contributions right here in Canada! I am so excited to begin the next chapter of my life and in the future I intend to contribute to the Dick Close Scholarship so that it may provide future generations with similar opportunities to those afforded to me.
April, 2019
During a recent discussion with a friend about raising children, he shared the quote “the years are short, but the days are long.” As I prepare to enter my fourth year of post secondary education this quote resonated with me quite strongly. I seem to want to start every review with the comment “where did the time go?” and yet “has it really only been 4 months since I last wrote a summary?”
This past semester has been a unique adventure that was made possible only with the support of the Pacific Rim Foundation. The goal of this semester for students in the Bachelors of Midwifery at Mount Royal University is to experience maternity care from the perspective of other professions and other cultures. I got to spend 3 weeks learning from obstetricians, scrubbing into cesarean sections, observing complicated, high risk deliveries and how they manage labour and delivery units. A month of my semester was spent working with a nurse on the labour and delivery unit to understand the work that they do. Two weeks were spent in the neonatal intensive care unit to see the care of sick babies who need some extra help transitioning to life outside the womb. All these placements taught me so much about how these professionals do their jobs.
The highlight of my semester was my Transcultural Placement, which is an opportunity designed for students to experience maternity care in a unique setting. Many of my classmates experienced unique placements within Calgary. For me, I am interested in rural midwifery. In order to experience a placement that addressed this interests, I headed up to the Northwest Territories! Anyone who has booked flights up to the North can tell you that they are not cheap. In addition to the cost of flights, I found myself paying rent in two locations for a month! Without the support of the Pacific Rim Foundation scholarship, this opportunity would not have been accessible to me, and what an incredible experience it was!
I was welcomed into the small community of Fort Smith where I learned from the midwives who run the maternity care for the town. They are incredible women who taught me so much in the time that I was there. After 3 weeks in Fort Smith, I flew up to Yellowknife where I was able to deliver babies at the Stanton hospital and participate in providing care for women who came from all over the Northwest Territories to deliver their babies in Yellowknife before heading back to their remote communities. It was an incredible experience that taught me so much.
After a long and busy semester that seemed to disappear before my eyes I am so grateful to be home for Easter weekend to rest and visit with my family. Next week I will be heading back to Alberta for a spring/summer placement in Edmonton.
It is hard to believe that there is just 1 year (3 semesters) left of my degree. I am so grateful to the support of the Pacific Rim Foundation that has gotten me this far and will carry me through to the end.
December, 2018
At the beginning of my degree, there were 12 students in my cohort. Two and a half years later, there are 4 of the original students from that group of 12. The Pacific Rim Scholarship has been a significant support in my ability to continue with the degree while others have not. It has provided me with the ability to focus wholeheartedly on my studies and clinical placements. Midwifery is a very challenging degree in a variety of ways. As students we are expected to attend class in addition to participating in a clinical placement where we are on call 24 hours a day 6 days a week. It is hard work that, at times, can be emotionally and physically exhausting. Students must have a car that is reliable through the Alberta winters, appropriate attire for clinic and births, purchase lab equipment, textbooks, tuition and school supplies.
This semester I truly began to feel like a real midwife. I answered client's phone calls and emails, independently ran clinic visits and felt confident managing births. My ability to perform clinical skills increased exponentially over the course of the semester. I caught babies and followed up with them in the following weeks to help troubleshoot breastfeeding concerns, run tests and assess their continued health. My hands were the first to touch these babies and to welcome them into the world. What an incredible feeling!
Concurrent to the wonderful hands-on clinical experiences was a class that felt so very relevant. We learned about how to manage motor vehicle accidents in pregnancy then a client called to tell me she had just been in a crash! We discussed in class the pros and cons of genetic testing and a client asked me to tell her more about her options the next week. It is starting to feel as though my learning is coming together to create a level of competency that surprises me on some days. Of course, in addition to an increase in my confidence, I feel as though I have more to learn than ever. For every piece of information, I learn, I find myself asking two more questions that need to be answered. This is the joy of learning and I so look forward to what the next semester has in store for me.
I am so excited to be able to serve communities like the ones on the West Coast where I grew up. The Pacific Rim Foundation is making it possible for me to achieve my dreams and eventually bring my skills back to the communities that mean so much to me.
I hope that this email finds you well and that you have a very merry Christmas!
Sincerely,
Heather Morrison
September, 2018
This past semester has been equal parts reaffirming and life-altering. Over the course of the semester I attended 16 births, the majority of these births were at home and in water. Many people I have spoken with seem to believe that midwives only attend births at home, in reality some of my fellow students did not attend a single home birth over the course of the semester. How midwives practice depends on the clients that they are serving. I had the good fortune this semester of being in the town of Cardston, learning from two experienced midwives, who practice with a population of women who are very familiar with birth and have lots of babies. The support and feedback that I received from my preceptors encouraged me to keep working hard to become the best midwife I can be. The reaffirmation of my dream to become a midwife happened over and over this semester as I attended births and towards the end of the semester began to catch babies myself!
I was in one class this semester, which was a good number since I was on call 24/7 for births. This class matched well with my clinical practice and often helped me to answer questions from clients. Often, it was a challenge to video conference in for class. Being behind a screen can be a very isolating experience and makes asking questions far more difficult. The good news is that I was always able to send a message to classmates to find out an answer if I needed to!
I am looking forwards to the next semester and the urban clinical experience I will have the opportunity to gain! I will also be taking pathophysiology which will hopefully be a challenging and rewarding class.
Overall this has been a great semester. I have learned so much and gained so much confidence with hands-on clinical practice.
May 1, 2017
I did it! I have completed my first year of university and what a year it has been.
This past semester I took five courses and three labs, which meant I found myself quite busy. There was even a week I had five midterms in 2 days and another with four in three. Surprisingly, other than those few crazy weeks, the semester didn’t seem too bad. I still had time to exercise and occasionally spend time with friends.
Over the course of both semesters I took Anatomy and Physiology; a core course for both the nursing and midwifery programs. It is a notorious class for the nurses as many people fail and some even drop out of the program because of it. While it was certainly challenging at times, I was quite proud of myself for completing both sections of the course with higher than average grades. My grade also improved in the second semester showing me that I was improving as a student.
I was excited that in the second semester I had two midwifery courses with labs. I felt that we were beginning to build a foundation of knowledge related to midwifery. Health Assessment, one of the courses, was an overview of the physical health assessment and medical history taking that Midwives must do. We also began to learn the basics of doing blood draws, intramuscular injections and starting intravenous drips. It makes being a midwife seem more real. The second course was Lab Sciences, which explained the mechanics of many pathological conditions that can occur during pregnancy, as well as physiologic changes that occur.
This spring I am taking two online courses. I am so fortunate that I am able to be at home with my family while doing so. Otherwise I would have had to remain in Calgary until the end of June. I am taking these courses because to finish my degree in four years I have to take spring courses. Preceptorships start in the winter semester of second year, which is only eight months away for me now! A preceptorship is when students are assigned a midwife whom they work with for the semester. With preceptorships students also simultaneously take a course, however they cannot be taking a full course load. This is why we are required to take some courses during spring.
It is hard to believe how fast the last eight months has gone by. I cannot imagine how quickly the next three years will pass if I am already so far along in my program. At the end of my first year I am certainly ready to spend some time back on the West Coast, close to the ocean.
December, 2017
At the beginning of my degree, there were 12 students in my cohort. Two and a half years later, there are 4 of the original students from that group of 12. The Pacific Rim Scholarship has been a significant support in my ability to continue with the degree while others have not. It has provided me with the ability to focus wholeheartedly on my studies and clinical placements. Midwifery is a very challenging degree in a variety of ways. As students we are expected to attend class in addition to participating in a clinical placement where we are on call 24 hours a day 6 days a week. It is hard work that, at times, can be emotionally and physically exhausting. Students must have a car that is reliable through the Alberta winters, appropriate attire for clinic and births, purchase lab equipment, textbooks, tuition and school supplies.
This semester I truly began to feel like a real midwife. I answered client's phone calls and emails, independently ran clinic visits and felt confident managing births. My ability to perform clinical skills increased exponentially over the course of the semester. I caught babies and followed up with them in the following weeks to help troubleshoot breastfeeding concerns, run tests and assess their continued health. My hands were the first to touch these babies and to welcome them into the world. What an incredible feeling!
Concurrent to the wonderful hands-on clinical experiences was a class that felt so very relevant. We learned about how to manage motor vehicle accidents in pregnancy then a client called to tell me she had just been in a crash! We discussed in class the pros and cons of genetic testing and a client asked me to tell her more about her options the next week. It is starting to feel as though my learning is coming together to create a level of competency that surprises me on some days. Of course, in addition to an increase in my confidence, I feel as though I have more to learn than ever. For every piece of information, I learn, I find myself asking two more questions that need to be answered. This is the joy of learning and I so look forward to what the next semester has in store for me.
I am so excited to be able to serve communities like the ones on the West Coast where I grew up. The Pacific Rim Foundation is making it possible for me to achieve my dreams and eventually bring my skills back to the communities that mean so much to me.
I hope that this email finds you well and that you have a very merry Christmas!
Sincerely,
Heather Morrison
January 1, 2017
Hello,
I hope this new year finds you well! I have just requested my official transcript from my institution, I expect it to reach you by mail within the next week. It will arrive at the Tofino Post Office box 495. If it doesn't please let me know and I will follow up with Mount Royal.
I have attached proof of registration and payment for the upcoming Winter Term. I am finding it difficult to find an official receipt as I pay my tuition through online banking. If the document I have attached is not sufficient please let me know and I will speak with administration for assistance in the matter.
Now for an update on my first semester as a university student:
Four months ago today I left Ucluelet to travel to Calgary, where I would begin school at Mount Royal University. My transition from a small coastal town to a large city in an interior province went quite smoothly. I was so lucky to have my older sister with me in Calgary, always willing to support or guide me through new experiences. I discovered a new found love for grocery shopping and the ability to plan my own menu.
Starting school was at first quite intimidating. Mount Royal University was a college not long ago, so in terms of the average university it's actually quite small. For me though, transitioning from Ucluelet Secondary, a school of 140 students, to Mount Royal with around 12,000 students it was a big change. However, I quickly settled into a routine and began to find my way around campus. Throughout the semester I was constantly searching for new quiet places that have an outlet for my laptop! This is harder than you would think, especially in the afternoon on a weekday.
On my first day I met the other 11 women in my year of the Midwifery program. The ages of these women ranged from 20-40, leaving me far behind at 17. This semester, A Survey of Midwifery was the only course I had with all of my cohort. This course introduced midwifery as a profession and it's basic principles. It was so exciting to engage in lively conversation with a group of women equally passionate about midwifery!
Many of the courses that I took this previous semester were not directly related to midwifery. Sometimes I would find myself wondering "how on earth will this be useful to me as a Midwife?!" I actually began to create a game out of it, creating scenarios where the information I was learning would be useful in my profession. It made studying more fun.
To keep some balance in my life, I have taken up climbing. Mount Royal has a very good climbing and bouldering gym. I was ecstatic to discover that one of the women in my year enjoys climbing and has lots of experience. She also just happens to be from Victoria, an islander! We started meeting once or twice every week to go climbing.
Next semester, I get to start learning practical midwifery skills. I couldn't be more excited! This program moves quickly. A year from now I will be preparing to head out on my first placement. I will be assigned a midwife whom I will follow and learn from for the semester; I could be placed anywhere in Alberta! Unlike medical school this program doesn't provide any bursaries or grants to help defray the cost of placements. Students are expected to find and pay for their own accommodations in the region of their placement, as well as all other related costs.
Receiving the Pacific Rim Foundation scholarship will make it possible for me to apply to placements in rural areas. This is important to me, as I am hoping to return to the west coast to set up a practice that provides care to Ucluelet, Tofino and the surrounding communities.
My journey has only just begun.At the beginning of my degree, there were 12 students in my cohort. Two and a half years later, there are 4 of the original students from that group of 12. The Pacific Rim Scholarship has been a significant support in my ability to continue with the degree while others have not. It has provided me with the ability to focus wholeheartedly on my studies and clinical placements. Midwifery is a very challenging degree in a variety of ways. As students we are expected to attend class in addition to participating in a clinical placement where we are on call 24 hours a day 6 days a week. It is hard work that, at times, can be emotionally and physically exhausting. Students must have a car that is reliable through the Alberta winters, appropriate attire for clinic and births, purchase lab equipment, textbooks, tuition and school supplies.
This semester I truly began to feel like a real midwife. I answered client's phone calls and emails, independently ran clinic visits and felt confident managing births. My ability to perform clinical skills increased exponentially over the course of the semester. I caught babies and followed up with them in the following weeks to help troubleshoot breastfeeding concerns, run tests and assess their continued health. My hands were the first to touch these babies and to welcome them into the world. What an incredible feeling!
Concurrent to the wonderful hands-on clinical experiences was a class that felt so very relevant. We learned about how to manage motor vehicle accidents in pregnancy then a client called to tell me she had just been in a crash! We discussed in class the pros and cons of genetic testing and a client asked me to tell her more about her options the next week. It is starting to feel as though my learning is coming together to create a level of competency that surprises me on some days. Of course, in addition to an increase in my confidence, I feel as though I have more to learn than ever. For every piece of information, I learn, I find myself asking two more questions that need to be answered. This is the joy of learning and I so look forward to what the next semester has in store for me.
I am so excited to be able to serve communities like the ones on the West Coast where I grew up. The Pacific Rim Foundation is making it possible for me to achieve my dreams and eventually bring my skills back to the communities that mean so much to me.
I hope that this email finds you well and that you have a very merry Christmas!
Sincerely,
Heather Morrison
December 2019
What a semester of growth! Over the past 3 and a half months, I have attended 23 births and have personally delivered 14 babies. That’s 23 new little lives entering this world; 23 families welcoming a new member, many sleepless nights, almost 100 clinic visits, home visits, driving, more home visits, triage calls, phone calls at midnight and a sleepy partner wishing me luck on my way out the door, as she is woken for a third time that night by my phone ringing.
This semester also included a lot of driving; to the hospital, to home visits, to Calgary for classes and exams. Then there is the hospital parking. If there’s one way hospitals make money, it’s charging students exorbitant parking prices! Also rent, unlike medical school, my program has no subsidy for accommodation. This meant that it was up to me to find accommodation, move, get settled and to absorb those costs. Which brings me to the most important point of all. Which is that my attendance of those 23 babies, would not be possible without the support of the Dick Close Scholarship.
Over the past 3 and a half years I have felt the support of my home community, and of this scholarship. As I reach the end of my time receiving the Dick Close Scholarship, with just one semester left, I am so grateful for the opportunities that have been afforded to me. Come April I will graduate from Mount Royal University with a bachelor’s degree in Midwifery. I intend to use this degree to have the greatest positive impact I can. At 21, I am in a rather unique professional position of being flexible in where I go and what I choose to do with my degree. When I began this degree, I had aspirations of making invaluable contributions to global health. My time in the North West Territories reminded me that I can make valuable contributions right here in Canada! I am so excited to begin the next chapter of my life and in the future I intend to contribute to the Dick Close Scholarship so that it may provide future generations with similar opportunities to those afforded to me.
April, 2019
During a recent discussion with a friend about raising children, he shared the quote “the years are short, but the days are long.” As I prepare to enter my fourth year of post secondary education this quote resonated with me quite strongly. I seem to want to start every review with the comment “where did the time go?” and yet “has it really only been 4 months since I last wrote a summary?”
This past semester has been a unique adventure that was made possible only with the support of the Pacific Rim Foundation. The goal of this semester for students in the Bachelors of Midwifery at Mount Royal University is to experience maternity care from the perspective of other professions and other cultures. I got to spend 3 weeks learning from obstetricians, scrubbing into cesarean sections, observing complicated, high risk deliveries and how they manage labour and delivery units. A month of my semester was spent working with a nurse on the labour and delivery unit to understand the work that they do. Two weeks were spent in the neonatal intensive care unit to see the care of sick babies who need some extra help transitioning to life outside the womb. All these placements taught me so much about how these professionals do their jobs.
The highlight of my semester was my Transcultural Placement, which is an opportunity designed for students to experience maternity care in a unique setting. Many of my classmates experienced unique placements within Calgary. For me, I am interested in rural midwifery. In order to experience a placement that addressed this interests, I headed up to the Northwest Territories! Anyone who has booked flights up to the North can tell you that they are not cheap. In addition to the cost of flights, I found myself paying rent in two locations for a month! Without the support of the Pacific Rim Foundation scholarship, this opportunity would not have been accessible to me, and what an incredible experience it was!
I was welcomed into the small community of Fort Smith where I learned from the midwives who run the maternity care for the town. They are incredible women who taught me so much in the time that I was there. After 3 weeks in Fort Smith, I flew up to Yellowknife where I was able to deliver babies at the Stanton hospital and participate in providing care for women who came from all over the Northwest Territories to deliver their babies in Yellowknife before heading back to their remote communities. It was an incredible experience that taught me so much.
After a long and busy semester that seemed to disappear before my eyes I am so grateful to be home for Easter weekend to rest and visit with my family. Next week I will be heading back to Alberta for a spring/summer placement in Edmonton.
It is hard to believe that there is just 1 year (3 semesters) left of my degree. I am so grateful to the support of the Pacific Rim Foundation that has gotten me this far and will carry me through to the end.
December, 2018
At the beginning of my degree, there were 12 students in my cohort. Two and a half years later, there are 4 of the original students from that group of 12. The Pacific Rim Scholarship has been a significant support in my ability to continue with the degree while others have not. It has provided me with the ability to focus wholeheartedly on my studies and clinical placements. Midwifery is a very challenging degree in a variety of ways. As students we are expected to attend class in addition to participating in a clinical placement where we are on call 24 hours a day 6 days a week. It is hard work that, at times, can be emotionally and physically exhausting. Students must have a car that is reliable through the Alberta winters, appropriate attire for clinic and births, purchase lab equipment, textbooks, tuition and school supplies.
This semester I truly began to feel like a real midwife. I answered client's phone calls and emails, independently ran clinic visits and felt confident managing births. My ability to perform clinical skills increased exponentially over the course of the semester. I caught babies and followed up with them in the following weeks to help troubleshoot breastfeeding concerns, run tests and assess their continued health. My hands were the first to touch these babies and to welcome them into the world. What an incredible feeling!
Concurrent to the wonderful hands-on clinical experiences was a class that felt so very relevant. We learned about how to manage motor vehicle accidents in pregnancy then a client called to tell me she had just been in a crash! We discussed in class the pros and cons of genetic testing and a client asked me to tell her more about her options the next week. It is starting to feel as though my learning is coming together to create a level of competency that surprises me on some days. Of course, in addition to an increase in my confidence, I feel as though I have more to learn than ever. For every piece of information, I learn, I find myself asking two more questions that need to be answered. This is the joy of learning and I so look forward to what the next semester has in store for me.
I am so excited to be able to serve communities like the ones on the West Coast where I grew up. The Pacific Rim Foundation is making it possible for me to achieve my dreams and eventually bring my skills back to the communities that mean so much to me.
I hope that this email finds you well and that you have a very merry Christmas!
Sincerely,
Heather Morrison
September, 2018
This past semester has been equal parts reaffirming and life-altering. Over the course of the semester I attended 16 births, the majority of these births were at home and in water. Many people I have spoken with seem to believe that midwives only attend births at home, in reality some of my fellow students did not attend a single home birth over the course of the semester. How midwives practice depends on the clients that they are serving. I had the good fortune this semester of being in the town of Cardston, learning from two experienced midwives, who practice with a population of women who are very familiar with birth and have lots of babies. The support and feedback that I received from my preceptors encouraged me to keep working hard to become the best midwife I can be. The reaffirmation of my dream to become a midwife happened over and over this semester as I attended births and towards the end of the semester began to catch babies myself!
I was in one class this semester, which was a good number since I was on call 24/7 for births. This class matched well with my clinical practice and often helped me to answer questions from clients. Often, it was a challenge to video conference in for class. Being behind a screen can be a very isolating experience and makes asking questions far more difficult. The good news is that I was always able to send a message to classmates to find out an answer if I needed to!
I am looking forwards to the next semester and the urban clinical experience I will have the opportunity to gain! I will also be taking pathophysiology which will hopefully be a challenging and rewarding class.
Overall this has been a great semester. I have learned so much and gained so much confidence with hands-on clinical practice.
May 1, 2017
I did it! I have completed my first year of university and what a year it has been.
This past semester I took five courses and three labs, which meant I found myself quite busy. There was even a week I had five midterms in 2 days and another with four in three. Surprisingly, other than those few crazy weeks, the semester didn’t seem too bad. I still had time to exercise and occasionally spend time with friends.
Over the course of both semesters I took Anatomy and Physiology; a core course for both the nursing and midwifery programs. It is a notorious class for the nurses as many people fail and some even drop out of the program because of it. While it was certainly challenging at times, I was quite proud of myself for completing both sections of the course with higher than average grades. My grade also improved in the second semester showing me that I was improving as a student.
I was excited that in the second semester I had two midwifery courses with labs. I felt that we were beginning to build a foundation of knowledge related to midwifery. Health Assessment, one of the courses, was an overview of the physical health assessment and medical history taking that Midwives must do. We also began to learn the basics of doing blood draws, intramuscular injections and starting intravenous drips. It makes being a midwife seem more real. The second course was Lab Sciences, which explained the mechanics of many pathological conditions that can occur during pregnancy, as well as physiologic changes that occur.
This spring I am taking two online courses. I am so fortunate that I am able to be at home with my family while doing so. Otherwise I would have had to remain in Calgary until the end of June. I am taking these courses because to finish my degree in four years I have to take spring courses. Preceptorships start in the winter semester of second year, which is only eight months away for me now! A preceptorship is when students are assigned a midwife whom they work with for the semester. With preceptorships students also simultaneously take a course, however they cannot be taking a full course load. This is why we are required to take some courses during spring.
It is hard to believe how fast the last eight months has gone by. I cannot imagine how quickly the next three years will pass if I am already so far along in my program. At the end of my first year I am certainly ready to spend some time back on the West Coast, close to the ocean.
December, 2017
At the beginning of my degree, there were 12 students in my cohort. Two and a half years later, there are 4 of the original students from that group of 12. The Pacific Rim Scholarship has been a significant support in my ability to continue with the degree while others have not. It has provided me with the ability to focus wholeheartedly on my studies and clinical placements. Midwifery is a very challenging degree in a variety of ways. As students we are expected to attend class in addition to participating in a clinical placement where we are on call 24 hours a day 6 days a week. It is hard work that, at times, can be emotionally and physically exhausting. Students must have a car that is reliable through the Alberta winters, appropriate attire for clinic and births, purchase lab equipment, textbooks, tuition and school supplies.
This semester I truly began to feel like a real midwife. I answered client's phone calls and emails, independently ran clinic visits and felt confident managing births. My ability to perform clinical skills increased exponentially over the course of the semester. I caught babies and followed up with them in the following weeks to help troubleshoot breastfeeding concerns, run tests and assess their continued health. My hands were the first to touch these babies and to welcome them into the world. What an incredible feeling!
Concurrent to the wonderful hands-on clinical experiences was a class that felt so very relevant. We learned about how to manage motor vehicle accidents in pregnancy then a client called to tell me she had just been in a crash! We discussed in class the pros and cons of genetic testing and a client asked me to tell her more about her options the next week. It is starting to feel as though my learning is coming together to create a level of competency that surprises me on some days. Of course, in addition to an increase in my confidence, I feel as though I have more to learn than ever. For every piece of information, I learn, I find myself asking two more questions that need to be answered. This is the joy of learning and I so look forward to what the next semester has in store for me.
I am so excited to be able to serve communities like the ones on the West Coast where I grew up. The Pacific Rim Foundation is making it possible for me to achieve my dreams and eventually bring my skills back to the communities that mean so much to me.
I hope that this email finds you well and that you have a very merry Christmas!
Sincerely,
Heather Morrison
January 1, 2017
Hello,
I hope this new year finds you well! I have just requested my official transcript from my institution, I expect it to reach you by mail within the next week. It will arrive at the Tofino Post Office box 495. If it doesn't please let me know and I will follow up with Mount Royal.
I have attached proof of registration and payment for the upcoming Winter Term. I am finding it difficult to find an official receipt as I pay my tuition through online banking. If the document I have attached is not sufficient please let me know and I will speak with administration for assistance in the matter.
Now for an update on my first semester as a university student:
Four months ago today I left Ucluelet to travel to Calgary, where I would begin school at Mount Royal University. My transition from a small coastal town to a large city in an interior province went quite smoothly. I was so lucky to have my older sister with me in Calgary, always willing to support or guide me through new experiences. I discovered a new found love for grocery shopping and the ability to plan my own menu.
Starting school was at first quite intimidating. Mount Royal University was a college not long ago, so in terms of the average university it's actually quite small. For me though, transitioning from Ucluelet Secondary, a school of 140 students, to Mount Royal with around 12,000 students it was a big change. However, I quickly settled into a routine and began to find my way around campus. Throughout the semester I was constantly searching for new quiet places that have an outlet for my laptop! This is harder than you would think, especially in the afternoon on a weekday.
On my first day I met the other 11 women in my year of the Midwifery program. The ages of these women ranged from 20-40, leaving me far behind at 17. This semester, A Survey of Midwifery was the only course I had with all of my cohort. This course introduced midwifery as a profession and it's basic principles. It was so exciting to engage in lively conversation with a group of women equally passionate about midwifery!
Many of the courses that I took this previous semester were not directly related to midwifery. Sometimes I would find myself wondering "how on earth will this be useful to me as a Midwife?!" I actually began to create a game out of it, creating scenarios where the information I was learning would be useful in my profession. It made studying more fun.
To keep some balance in my life, I have taken up climbing. Mount Royal has a very good climbing and bouldering gym. I was ecstatic to discover that one of the women in my year enjoys climbing and has lots of experience. She also just happens to be from Victoria, an islander! We started meeting once or twice every week to go climbing.
Next semester, I get to start learning practical midwifery skills. I couldn't be more excited! This program moves quickly. A year from now I will be preparing to head out on my first placement. I will be assigned a midwife whom I will follow and learn from for the semester; I could be placed anywhere in Alberta! Unlike medical school this program doesn't provide any bursaries or grants to help defray the cost of placements. Students are expected to find and pay for their own accommodations in the region of their placement, as well as all other related costs.
Receiving the Pacific Rim Foundation scholarship will make it possible for me to apply to placements in rural areas. This is important to me, as I am hoping to return to the west coast to set up a practice that provides care to Ucluelet, Tofino and the surrounding communities.
My journey has only just begun.At the beginning of my degree, there were 12 students in my cohort. Two and a half years later, there are 4 of the original students from that group of 12. The Pacific Rim Scholarship has been a significant support in my ability to continue with the degree while others have not. It has provided me with the ability to focus wholeheartedly on my studies and clinical placements. Midwifery is a very challenging degree in a variety of ways. As students we are expected to attend class in addition to participating in a clinical placement where we are on call 24 hours a day 6 days a week. It is hard work that, at times, can be emotionally and physically exhausting. Students must have a car that is reliable through the Alberta winters, appropriate attire for clinic and births, purchase lab equipment, textbooks, tuition and school supplies.
This semester I truly began to feel like a real midwife. I answered client's phone calls and emails, independently ran clinic visits and felt confident managing births. My ability to perform clinical skills increased exponentially over the course of the semester. I caught babies and followed up with them in the following weeks to help troubleshoot breastfeeding concerns, run tests and assess their continued health. My hands were the first to touch these babies and to welcome them into the world. What an incredible feeling!
Concurrent to the wonderful hands-on clinical experiences was a class that felt so very relevant. We learned about how to manage motor vehicle accidents in pregnancy then a client called to tell me she had just been in a crash! We discussed in class the pros and cons of genetic testing and a client asked me to tell her more about her options the next week. It is starting to feel as though my learning is coming together to create a level of competency that surprises me on some days. Of course, in addition to an increase in my confidence, I feel as though I have more to learn than ever. For every piece of information, I learn, I find myself asking two more questions that need to be answered. This is the joy of learning and I so look forward to what the next semester has in store for me.
I am so excited to be able to serve communities like the ones on the West Coast where I grew up. The Pacific Rim Foundation is making it possible for me to achieve my dreams and eventually bring my skills back to the communities that mean so much to me.
I hope that this email finds you well and that you have a very merry Christmas!
Sincerely,
Heather Morrison
