I took care of a patient today who was post op day one still on a PCA. I went in this morning and said hi. We chatted for a minute because her older daughter was the same age as my daughter. Then she asked for her baby from the nursery. I had someone bring her the baby. Then I continued on my rounds.
About 45 minutes later I heard a cry from the hallway. I ran into the room and the patient was hysterically crying holding her baby. She was crying, "They left me alone! Why did they leave me alone?" She said she was sitting in the chair holding the baby when she suddenly dozed off and the baby rolled onto the floor. I grabbed the baby and brought her to the nursery.
The baby was fine but when the patient's husband showed up he was ******. He said, "How could you leave her in the room alone with the baby? She was on morphine. She can't take care of the baby by herself." He made a big stink about it. Supervisors were involved. I was up to my knees in paperwork. Now the nurses are starting to question non-separation. But have you ever had a mother drop her baby on postpartum? Who's ultimately responsible when a postpartum mother drops her baby?
