Sad, sad case today

[TazziRN]

Just before I arrived the night shift had responded to a code in the unit. Young woman, less than 12 hours postpartum, had severe PIH with a mag drip during labor, after the delivery and after family left was found unresponsive by staff. House supe tried a sternal rub and she postured. Moved her to the unit and she coded. Major bilat bleed into both ventricles, pupils fixed and dilated.

Kind of scary for me because I had PIH.

[mariedoreen]

Why men should not be the majority body legislating on women's health issues...

[Bethy-lynn]

had a case not too long ago, will never forget that moment. Pt had delivered 2weeks before, been complaining ofleg pain ever since, came to units with HUGE PE, lasted long enough to have a greenfield filter placed, got sent back to us, then coded as air-care arrived. Pt had a seven y/o, plus the new-born, seperated from husband d/t physical abuse, and was only 28. Cried allot that day.

[BSNtobe2009]

I'm a student and when I had my daughter I had to have an emergency c-section due to pre-eclampsia. As soon as it was set in, and I was admitted to the hospital, they took my blood pressure every 2 hours, constantly tested my urine, and every 3 hours I had a fetal monitor brought in, plus an ultrasound every day.

As soon as they realized my condition was stagnant and not showing improvement, 6 hours later I was in the OR. She was breech and they said they weren't even going to attempt a lady partsl delivery to minimize trauma to the baby. There was never a question in my mind that I was being adequately monitored.

I watch alot of medical shows (where the video is real..not dramatizations), and I'm suprised.

My question is this: I see ALOT of women on these shows with pre-eclampsia, and it seems like the doctors wait, and wait, and wait, and these labors get drawn out, and the baby gets distressed, and things like this happen.

Was I just lucky as hell to get great care? Or do some OB's take chances that they shouldn't?

When a baby is severely premature, I understand that...but it's tragic when the baby is 32 weeks plus.

[BSNtobe2009]

Here's what's really sad: the staff called the doc several times during the night to tell him she was still hypertensive and had a right sided HA.

My grandmother, years ago, when she was 70, had double bypass surgery and also was on dialysis, that was started a couple of days before she had the surgery. She was doing great and her first day in step-down we thought she was hyperventilating, but her body cavity was filling up with fluid and compressed on her lungs. Her BP bottomed out and she spend 3 months in acute care before she returned home....and 100 lbs lighter.

It took almost 2 hours for them to call a Pulminary Doctor that was on call to get to the hospital...she was suffering..sweating, she thought she was going to die. She kept begging for someone to help her and all we kept hearing as that "they paged the doctor".

I went straight up to her cardiologist, who had come down to assess her, I told them (and I HATED to do this) that I was going to sue the crap out of them if something happened to her.

I just thought 2 hours was ridiculous (THAT is why I was upset)...it is still a mystery what happened to her that caused her to take such a turn and spend 3 months in ICU when she was smooth sailing.