Looking for better...How is OB Nsg in the Houston area?

[neesh]

Hey fellow OB RN's

I have been a High Risk OB RN for 2+years. I have always had a love for this area since high school (I was pregnant at the time and shadowed my midwife for my senior project) Entereing college I considreed peds nursing but after rotatiing..I felt that OB was for me

Now enough history...

I will be getting married next year and am planning to locate the Houston area; Missouri City, SUgarland or possibly Katy TX.

Can anyone tell me about L&D in Houston, particularly about hospitals that care for high risk or Level III hospitals? How is pay? Shift diff ( i work 12 nights) type of patients...importance of knowing some spanish ( i know very little...enough to push with patients)...how women are treated in labor? Can they walk, are they bed ridden, are doula's involved...and what are typical patient ratios in various hopsitals?

My very first hospital was level III, semi private hospital. I worked with private MDs, CNMs and the residents patient ration was 1:1 or 2:1 (staffed very well) but the shift diff and pay wasnt great(19.79 base +.75 shiff diff for nights only) no week-end/holiday or anything else) compared to what I am making now....(18.82 +25% week-end and bedside nsg bonus and 2.50 evenings, 3.50 nights time and a half for thankx and christmas) but bcuz of the terrible nsg shortage on our unit. We are required to work 2 extra shifts a month (24hrs)

Also nsg. turnover is very high becasue of the patient acuity. Many RN's come and think that OB RN's dont do very much and they can handle it. But here at the MED in Memphis TN, we take care of EVERYBODY from the fairly healthy to the very sick as well. I have only worked here for a little over a year...and I have really learned a lot I love the staff RN's, it fits me like a glove, but when we get busy...we get slammed! 1:3 and sometimes 1:4 when they are 2 or 3 simultaneous deliveries and c/s happening all at once. Its a 15 bed unit, with 9 evaluation(triage) beds, 3 recovery beds, and 4 ICU beds. Many days we are truly not staffed adequately for the full capacity of the entire unit. On top of that our patients many times have No PNC, arent english speaking, out of control or come to triage for ear aches and spotting at 8-9 wks (and bcuz we're the med, we cant say "no") We get transfers from 2different states not including TN when its ugly....its really ugly. But working there...i feel like I have aged like 5 years in high risk ob and there really isnt very much i havent seen or taken care of. And now that the hospital is almost bankrupt from taking care of "self pay" patients who dont pay or Tenn Care patients who dont reimburse the hospitals for the care, they are termintaing all agency and travel nurse contracts and our staffing will be back to almost nothing.

Truthfully I love OB nsg and would love better conditions..I miss having rapport with patients and families becase i have 3 or 4 other patients to see, and i cant teach them like i would want to because of language barriers.

Im sorry this post is so long...i really just wanted to get insight on OB nsg and hospitals in the Houson area. I also wanted to give background so you could understand the best and the "not so great" extent of my current nursing career.

Anyone who has anything to say would be greatly appreciated. I would love to have nurses to keep in contact with since we're moving (in a year)

Thanks for listening( to youself read this long post)

Neesh:roll

[Supersleuth]

I left Houtson in 2002. I worked there for 4 years as an OB nurse at a Level III nurs/Level I trauma hospital--Hermann Hosp. I also did research for the med school in the same L&D unit. Many of the patients are on studies which is exciting to me. They practice evidence based medicine there and it is very pro breastfeeding. I have to say by far it was the best experience I got as a nurse. Mostly high risk patients. The wages are way better than here. I think my first year as a new grad I made 44K take home witch then was a lot. When I left you could work float pool (Special Care Nurs/L&D) for over 30 bucks and hour with med benefits.

The hospital built a brand new building for OB/GYN/Level II,III nurseries as well as CCU. It is beautiful and all of the 35 L&D rooms are LDRP capable with huge recusitation rooms in each of them, a huge 6 room triage area. All of the same people who worked there with I left so to me that says something. To tell you the truth, I miss it.

My very close friend is a CNM at Galveston--not the same story as far as the way the OB's/Pedi practice--a little old fashioned and behind the times so it can be frustrating to be a nurse who has worked in a place that practiced much different.

I don't know too much about Women's--but they also have a Level III now too. St. Lukes I really nice and it is assoc. with Tex Children's Hosp so they also have high risk/Level III. The pay is comperable since they are all located in the Med Center. Outside the med center--the pay is not as good.

Any more ?? just let me know. Houston is a great place to be a nurse if you can put up with riding a bus into work from the parking lots and mucho traffic!!

Erin

[neesh]

Your reply was great, thanks! Where are you at currently??

Soon I will be traveling...hopefully I can get an assignment somewhere near there..(would be really convenient, or in CA)

Do you know of any local or per diem agencies that pay well? I would like to work that way when we move to get a feel for the way the hospitals function in the town...

Also thanks for the tip about the medical center. I will have to remember that! I just dont see myself doing anything else but HR OB, I've learned so much!! What were the nurse/patient ratios when you left??

Please feel free to email me personally at [email protected]

[crankyasanoldma]

Woman's has 29 or 30 L&D rooms, a 30 bed antepartum unit, about 60-80 post partum beds, about 100 beds in the level 2 and 3 NICU's, and a very large general nursery. They also have a surgical floor. They deliver between 650 and 800 babies a month. The nurses that I know that work there are generally very happy there.