OB Rotation is Hell

I handled this by just going in and staying in . Sometimes, I'd sort of be behind the curtain but I was in and saw and did my time. I figured if male med students could be in the room, so could I.

First of all I'm a woman...I'm also taking my pre-reqs to get into nursing school.

I was in labor and suddenly the baby's HR dropped below 60. A nurse and her student who was covering my OB nurses lunch rushed in and tried a few different things. Nothing was working (rolling side to side, laying on stomach) so they called in the doctors. I had 2 dr.s (both male) hands up in me trying to find a cord to figure if it was wrapped around babys neck or what was going on while student was shaving me...I could care less...I just wanted my baby saved. They quickly ran me down to the OR and I had about 15-20 people surrounding me...I last remember the doctor say that he didn't care about germs just that they needed to cut me open and fast and then I went under. There were males and females and I know at least one was a student..Again I could have cared less as long as they saved my baby that was all I cared about. They did save my baby btw (they shipped her 4 hours out so I was dc'd the next day). I really bonded with my student nurse...in fact I requested her in helping me go to the bathroom, ect...Had she been male I bet the same would have happened.

At my clinic they have many students nurses and doctors and they ALWAYS ask if I mind...They say I have such and such following me today as a student nurse/dr. do you mind if he/she watches your care...I always allow them in....What they learn today from my case (or any care really) can only help them with someone else.

I think it's interesting that some think it's sexist when a birthing woman asks a man to leave the room if she's uncomfortable.

If you've put any effort in learning how a woman births best, you would know that feeling uncomfortable, unsafe, or unable to relax slows or completely stops labor due to the very intricate balance of hormones flowing through that woman's body. If your mere presence was interrupting that balance, why wouldn't you willingly leave so that she could labor most efficiently? It seems if your main focus was the well-being of your patient, and not your ego, it wouldn't be so unsettling. Instead, she should be praised for speaking up for what she wants in her birth experience!

If you think it's sexist, get over it. I think it's insane that someone thinks he or she is entitled to be a part of someone's birth experience when he or she isn't wanted. A mother should be able to choose, no questions asked, who is present in her birth room. It's all about her. Not the nurses.

Also, studies show that the more people present in the birth room, the slower labor progresses. If you're not serving an important purpose, you probably shouldn't be there in the first place.

I would not assume that some think it is sexist, or that the students do not have the patient's interests in mind. The concern here is that we spend x-number of hours in clinicals each week, and if we are not able to see and do, what is the point of being in the clinical? OB is a sensitive area, to be sure. We all just want to do our best so we can be great nurses.

If you go back in the thread, some state specifically that they think it is sexist if a woman does not want a male nurse in the room when she's giving birth.

I guess my concern isn't about how nursing students are going to get the most of their OB rotation during someone's birth experience. That would be the least of my worries. Figure it out. Maybe go in with an attitude other than "OB is a nightmare and I don't feel comfortable here." Maybe female nurses aren't asked to leave as often because they aren't as likely to go in with that attitude?

If you go back in the thread, you''ll see that some students have a horrible attitude and don't want to be in OB anyway, but they can't understand why they're being asked to leave during births. Would you want someone in the room like that during the most vulnerable, and important time in your life? Birthing women have amazing intuition and can sense BS a mile away.

Funny how some men have problems in L&D and some are welcomed with open arms... I'm even more convinced that it's more about attitude than sex.

It's probably a little of both, but probably more likely the woman doesn't doesn't a strange male in their birthing area and that's understandable. If I was having a turp or a colonoscopy I wouldn't want unknown females in the room watching me. Technically that might be "sexist" but I think students should be respectful of the patients wishes and move on without getting bent out of shape about it.

I dreaded OB like no other clinical and hated every moment of it, but wasn't asked to leave the room. Part of the reason was the instructor picked good patients for me, one was a nurse herself and another was having her fifth and was in no way modest or nervous. I think instructors neeed to be a little sensitive in their assignments and feel the patients out, in most areas but OB especially.

Also note that this is the MALE nursing student forum and maybe they just want to relate to each other without females coming along telling them what bad attitudes they have or to "get over it". OB is hard on some male students and they need an outlet for their frustrations. We all don't have to like 100% of our clinicals but we suffer through if we want to become nurses.

Totally agree Tweety - I would guess OB would be very difficult for most male nurses and a rant is very appropriate.

You would not say the same thing to a male medical student.

Male nursing students are the same. Maybe it's not your specialty of interest, but having a good experience and forming a solid foundation in clinical practice is very important regardless of whether you plan to work in OB or not.

I think the "bad attitudes" you saw on this thread were simply men reacting to discrimination from the staff, not primarily the mothers. OB is the last bastion of women's health that still shuts it's door in male RNs faces. It's time we changed that.

Nope, it's because they lack a penis. Some women are shy, uncomfortable, have a history of abuse, etc. Whatever the reason, its ok and I understand completely. I plan on going into ICU and have zero interest in L&D for long-term, but it's required and it's good to have a functional knowledge. I strongly agree that our clinical instructors should really attempt to get willing patients assigned to the male students.

If you don't want me there, I definitely don't want to be there.

However... I guarantee there is no checkbox on the NCLEX to fill in that exempts me from the relevant test questions if I was not allowed access in my L&D rotation. So, I need to be in there.

I have seen several sides of the issue. As an instructor, I had a male student who was very personable, and quickly made friends with the staff. They advocated for him with the patients and he saw many deliveries. His assertiveness, professionalism, and willingness to help out really made this rotation easier for him.

However, I also saw a few things I felt were inappropriate. To me, my male students are no different than my female students: they are professionals in training. One of the nurses actually went into the patient's room and I overheard her saying "You don't really want a MALE nursing student in here do you?" Um, well who would when you put it like that? You would have thought that my student was a voyeur. I spoke to her and asked that in the future, she discuss with the patient whether they would mind having A STUDENT in the room. I don't think the fact that the student is male even needs to be mentioned. I've never heard anyone ask a patient if they mind having a MALE or FEMALE medical student before. In this day and age, we need competent nurses of any and every race, gender, sexual orientation, and background. I am sorry that your rotation was not the learning experience it should have been. I hope that I can avoid this problem this semester with my students by discussing this issue with the staff prior to our rotation. Change is slow, but necessary.