Switching from ICU to Maternity nursing?

[vzcookie]

Hey there fellow nurses!

I have 5 years of med-surg experience and currently work on SICU but don't like it that much. I think I would be interested into switched populations all together. I wanted to find out if there are nurses out there that switched from Med/surg or ICU to OB nursing? How was the transition? Any books/guides you'd recommend? What are the units like like? I plan to shadow an L&D nurse to see if I even like that sort of nursing in the first place, but until then, I just wanted to get an impression from you all.

Thanks for the feedback!

[RunBabyRN]

I haven't made this transition, but I work with a few nurses who have. You might consider OB-CCRN certification (look into what's required).

If you haven't already, get your NRP certification, and take AWHONN EFM courses.

[BittyBabyGrower, MSN, RN]

I'd shadow and when you are there, ask if they offer those classes with orientation, which I am sure they do. For most certifications such as CCRN or such you have to be working in the area with X amount of time under your belt.

[ashleyisawesome, BSN, RN]

I switched from a med/surg (mostly surgical) floor to OB about a year ago and never looked back! It's different for sure, but that's what I needed because I was sick of med/surg. It truly is like starting over as a new grad though. You will have some advantage knowing how to do basic skills like IVs, foleys, gtts, but a lot of it is a whole new world. In labor you have to learn to care for a labor patient (cervical checks, reading EFM, knowing what to do when a baby or mom tanks, recovery etc), circulate in the OR, recover a patient in PACU, work triage (like a mini ER), and resuscitate and assess newborns. At some hospitals you also work in postpartum which is very similar to med/surg except most of the patients are healthy and can do most of their own self care--things can go bad, but for the most part it's laid back. Learning how to assess newborns and educate new moms about newborn care and breastfeeding is a big change, especially if you don't have any kids of your own.

I am so happy I made the switch. I love the variety that OB provides, and I see a ton of wild stuff. I see postpartum hemorrhages, cord prolapses, very sick moms (preeclampsia, chorioamnionitis, other comorbidities), etc. I have even delivered a baby on my own (doctor didn't make it in time), which was terrifying and awesome at the same time. Every delivery is different and I get excited every time, I almost always leave with a smile on my face, even though I am exhausted.

There are also a lot of negatives, I feel the positives far outweigh them but they are worth mentioning. We've had one maternal death since I have worked here which was devastating, and quite a few fetal demises and very sick babies. When older patients died in med/surg it was sad, but it didn't torment me the way watching a young mom unexpectedly deliver her baby at 22 weeks as she screams in agony over the death of her child, standing alongside the neonatologist as she explains to a new mom that one of her preemie twins has suffered a brain bleed in the NICU and died, or escorting the sobbing family members of the mom who died in the OR to the NICU to see the last part of their wife/mom/daughter they have left.

As for resources, you will learn a lot on the job. They should provide NRP and a fetal monitoring class once you are hired, among other educational offerings. You will also have an extensive orientation since there is so much to learn. I did read "Maternal-Neonatal nursing made incredibly easy" before starting the job, just to brush up on some basic OB stuff and set my mind at ease a bit, but I wouldn't say it's necessary. I recommend joining AWHONN. They send journals monthly with articles and studies pertaining to OB nursing that can be interesting and beneficial to your practice. Good luck!

[tigkaskit, BSN]

I transferred from PICU to OB roughly 7 years ago and have never looked back.