OB Next Semester. Tips and tricks?

[AspiringNurseMW]

Hi,

I start my OB Clinicals next semester. What advice would you give a student during this rotation? What should I brush up on/know really well? How can I as a student be more of a help rather than a hindrance?

I would also potentially like to work at this hospital when I graduate, so how can I leave a good impress with staff and maybe the nurse manager aside from good work ethic?

Also, I have done doula training and attended a few births and worked briefly at a birth center so I have some basics down like stages of labor and coping techniques.

[SoldierNurse22, BSN, RN]

As a student nurse (at least where I work), OB clinicals is comprised only of observation--no patient care allowed. That includes getting the patient up to the bathroom, getting vitals, etc. Our students don't touch patients.

In that kind of setting, I recommend asking questions of your clinical instructor/whatever nurse who might be taking you under his or her wing. Take notes if you need to, but have a nice list of things to chat about that pertain to nursing practice on L&D when you have a chance to ask questions. There is a lot to be learned in this field. Express interest in working at that hospital later with nurses you encounter and the NM if you happen to see him/her. Ask if they have any recommendations as to how to get your foot in the door. Ask if they have a nurse externship/internship available.

[Lauraingalls, BSN, RN]

I had a different experience. I got hands on. I felt a cervix and the babies head descending. I held legs and cried at each birth. I help massage funduses, wiped goo off newborns, complete newborn assessments, attended csections , saw a newborn resuscitation, and did a 24 her assessment and testing of a newborn. I also gave a vit k shot too.

Know your fetal strips and learn Veal Chop. Do whatever they will let you do. Bring food for the nurses.

[lavenderskies, BSN]

I would say...know what your school will allow you to do. Write it down. Share with your patients nurse. Tell your patients nurse you would like to do whatever they feel comfortable letting you do and to please let you know how you can help them.

I like the idea of a small treat for your pt. Nurse but then again....I like to eat lol

[AspiringNurseMW]

As a student nurse (at least where I work), OB clinicals is comprised only of observation--no patient care allowed. That includes getting the patient up to the bathroom, getting vitals, etc. Our students don't touch patients.

In that kind of setting, I recommend asking questions of your clinical instructor/whatever nurse who might be taking you under his or her wing. Take notes if you need to, but have a nice list of things to chat about that pertain to nursing practice on L&D when you have a chance to ask questions. There is a lot to be learned in this field. Express interest in working at that hospital later with nurses you encounter and the NM if you happen to see him/her. Ask if they have any recommendations as to how to get your foot in the door. Ask if they have a nurse externship/internship available.

That absolutely sucks! I'd be very irritated to pay tuition to observe. Thankfully we do patient care at all of our rotations.

[SoldierNurse22, BSN, RN]

That absolutely sucks! I'd be very irritated to pay tuition to observe. Thankfully we do patient care at all of our rotations.

It's a liability issue. Many of our patients are high-risk, and even for those who won't, it isn't worth it to my hospital to take the chance that someone might get inadvertently hurt by having students care for the laboring. There's a lot in OB that can go really wrong really fast.

[AspiringNurseMW]

It's a liability issue. Many of our patients are high-risk, and even for those who won't, it isn't worth it to my hospital to take the chance that someone might get inadvertently hurt by having students care for the laboring. There's a lot in OB that can go really wrong really fast.

I get it. I totally do. But it still sucks and I'd still be irritated as a student. Just like I'm irritated that they won't let us do blood glucose checks.

But at least its not something I have to worry about. I'm trying to spend some time learning to read strips.......those things aren't easy to interpret!

[SoldierNurse22, BSN, RN]

I get it. I totally do. But it still sucks and I'd still be irritated as a student. Just like I'm irritated that they won't let us do blood glucose checks.

But at least its not something I have to worry about. I'm trying to spend some time learning to read strips.......those things aren't easy to interpret!

I understand. I really wanted to be an L&D nurse from the start, and when I was in school, it was observation only. I think I changed a diaper once, but that's about it.

Interpreting strips is really a developed skill, and it can be more of an art than a science. It probably took me a good 3 months of interpreting strips to get comfortable with it, and nowadays, I can just glance a strip and have a pretty good idea of the general baseline, variability, and contraction pattern. I have some coworkers who have worked L&D for 30+ years, and they still get into debates as to how to interpret some strips. It's definitely a good point to ask lots of questions about as there is a lot to learn just on that topic alone!