Abortions performed in APU?

Specialties Ob/Gyn

Published

I was recently offered a position on a high risk Antepartum unit as my first job out of nursing school. Curious if it is common for abortions to be performed in this setting? I am unsure if this is where they would be done or not.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

Depends entirely on the facility. At a university facility at which I worked, they were performed very infrequently, and only in certain circumstances. The abortions that were performed were due to fetal anomalies that were typically incompatible with life, or risk to maternal health. Not the run-of-the-mill "I got pregnant and I don't want to be" type of abortions (sorry to be crass, didn't really know how to say that).

And at facilities that are affiliated with religious orders, never.

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My facility also does not perform elective abortions. But necessary abortions are performed in the OR.

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Specializes in OB.

I've never seen abortions performed on an antepartum unit. Where I work, which is a small teaching hospital, they do all the abortions, from very early aspirations to as-late-as-legally-possible D&Es, in the main OR.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
I've never seen abortions performed on an antepartum unit. Where I work, which is a small teaching hospital, they do all the abortions, from very early aspirations to as-late-as-legally-possible D&Es, in the main OR.

Perhaps I misunderstood the OP. I didn't interpret that she meant literally perform the abortion right there on the unit, but rather, that the nurses working in an antepartum unit may be taking care of women pre- or post-abortion, or might be assisting the OB with the procedure.

If I misunderstood you, OP, I apologize. Yes, the actual procedure is done in the OR.

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Specializes in OB.

You're right, I think I was the one who misunderstood. Still, I've never seen the antepartum nurses have to get involved, just the regular ambulatory surgery/PACU nursing staff.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
You're right, I think I was the one who misunderstood. Still, I've never seen the antepartum nurses have to get involved, just the regular ambulatory surgery/PACU nursing staff.

At our hospital, the high risk L&D staff (they are also the ones who staff antepartum) do all the OB and gyn surgeries. We have two ORs on the high risk L&D floor just for OB/Gyn surgeries.

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At our hospital, the high risk L&D staff (they are also the ones who staff antepartum) do all the OB and gyn surgeries. We have two ORs on the high risk L&D floor just for OB/Gyn surgeries.

Wow? Even total abdominal hysterectomies and tumor debulkings and the like? That must take a lot of load off of your main OR!

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