What is so special about working in postpartum???

[BSNbeauty]

...Because I cannot get a job in this specialty to save my life! I rarely see any job postings for PP in my area and when I do they want experience ofcourse. I've spoken to a few PP nurses and they all have been working in PP for years. There must be something special about it that nurses never leave this specialty.

I'm over the babies are cute stuff. I just know that PP is my niche.I love to teach, I would love making parents feel confident to take care of their new born. I want to be able to catch that PP hemorrage or infection. I want to be able to pick up on subtle changes in newborns and intervene right away.

I've had to share days in PP and really enjoyed seeing the day in life of the PP nurses. It wasn't all peaches and rainbows but I still see myself working there.

Okay, vent over....

[M/B-RN]

Man, I am working at the wrong hospital! On any given day I have 5-6 couplets, if it's really busy maybe up to 7. When we are understaffed for acuity it is possible to get 2 c-sections along with other fresh deliveries. Our unit also takes antepartum patients, some who may be direct admissions, come from ED, or are there for observation. Our patients always seem to have problems, too! Everyone has a fever, needs antibiotics, they are bleeders, high blood pressures, they cannot pee so we have to cath them, and on and on. Thankfully we only take care of normal to semi-normal newborns, however we are still responsible for their labs, hearing tests, and calling the pediatricians if they ever spike a fever or anything else is off. My days are never boring, and I work night shift often into day shift to finish up.

[klone, MSN, RN]

5 to 6 couplets? That's crazy.

[PinkNBlue, BSN, RN]

We have the same issues on our floor regarding acuity but we usually only have 4 couplets, sometimes 5 on night shift depending on our staffing. We also get gyne surgical patients (hysterectomies, bladder surgeries, salpingo-oopherectomies etc etc) which I like because it brings some variety sometimes. 5-6, up to 7 couplets is crazy. I don't sit down or take a break as it is with only 4-5 couplets! Yikes.

[RN_BSN09, RN]

I can't imagine having more than 4 couplets! That is our max, and they are "trying" to make the max 3 couplets, which they have been saying for the past year and a half. 4 couplets is do-able, but once you start having any sort of issue it can become hectic! I used to work telemetry and our max at night was 6 patients. Mother/Baby is 4 couplets (which is technically 8 patients), but for the most part they are all healthy without the chronic conditions so it evens out. If you have a baby on Phototherapy, or a mom who cannot void after her epidural, or a postpartum hemorrhage, or high blood pressure issues, or chorio with IV antibiotics for mom, or more than one baby who is having breast feeding issues and you spend most of the night in the room trying to help with breast feeding, it can make for a very busy shift. It's hit or miss... some nights are non-stop, and other nights are easy as pie. It just depends, which I think is the case for any area of nursing. However, what makes Mother/Baby a dream job, is that most of the time, your patients are HAPPY and mainly HEALTHY, and APPRECIATIVE... they say Thank You, and you feel a sense of accomplishment. The Telemetry floor was too much stress for me... you could never do enough, never get there fast enough, and you felt like your license was on the line. Mother/Baby is a place I could work forever. :)

[BSNbeauty, BSN, RN]

Well ladies wish me luck. I just interviewed for a mother/baby position, was offered position on spot. I'm just praying my references and everything else will check out okay, if so..... I got the job!!!!

[RN_BSN09, RN]

Well ladies wish me luck. I just interviewed for a mother/baby position, was offered position on spot. I'm just praying my references and everything else will check out okay, if so..... I got the job!!!!

Congrats and Welcome to the mother/baby world!! You will love it!

[BSNbeauty, BSN, RN]

Thank you !!!

[PinkNBlue, BSN, RN]

Congratulations!! You will absolutely love it Excited for you!!

[BSNbeauty, BSN, RN]

Thank you pinknblue!!!! I'll keep you all posted. I'm supposed to start in April if my references get cleared

[BSNbeauty, BSN, RN]

So I just finished week one on the floor and I LOVE IT. I actually look forward to going to work for the first time in my life.

-Proud PP RN

[PinkNBlue, BSN, RN]

So glad to hear! See? It really is the best :)

[9star, BSN, RN]

hiii crazy&cuteRN

congratulations for landing your dream job!!..its really nice to hear that you are liking it..

i graduated almost 6 yrs back(i'm a foreign graduate),passed my nclex-rn last yr..now i'm going to work in ob-pp..plz share something more about your experience on the floor and guide me about do's n don'ts...its going to be my first job as an RN in USA..i really have no idea about hospital setup and everything here..

thank yu

9star..!