Obstetrics Calling: Cell Phones as Childbirth Hazard

Among the most emotionally charged environments in the world of health care providers, the obstetrics department offers many joys and many challenges to practitioners. Part of the job is that they have to bring expectant parents face to face with risks and dangers their unborn or newborn child may be facing.

Parental and professional concerns align

This sense of constant vigilance underlies much of the research into the effects of parental, especially maternal, health and behavior on the health of the preterm and neonatal child. No stone is left unturned, and the combined improvements in maternal and infant health in the U.S. have been immense, over time.

Cell phone hazards studied in neonatal exposure

An example of how the ob/gyn care community continually advances the standard of care in light of evidence-based best practice is the recent report on effects of cell phone use during pregnancy. Based on data from over 45,000 childbirths, this longitudinal survey looked for ways exposure to cell phone radio fields “might harm developing babies’ brains” and produce negative outcomes “in language, communication, and motor skills at age 3 and 5.”

While further studies are needed to give cell phones a conclusive clean bill of health, this study found no evidence of adverse effects. Claiming no empirical basis for causation, the data actually indicates that higher levels of cell phone use correlate with improved language and cognitive function compared to lower rates of cell phone use.

In the interests of showing an abundance of caution, the study’s authors recommend that expectant parents avoid holding cell phones in proximity to a mother’s abdomen. It might also be inferred that both parents should use verbal communication freely, and with an awareness of a captive audience, during the in utero period.

Interim positions in obstetrics

NHS Solutions is frequently involved with finding candidates for senior obstetrics nurse leaders and interim directors of obstetrics. We have the re-location experience and expertise to make the move a memorable one – for all the right reasons. Reach out and ask today about the next great opportunity.

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