New OB Nurses, Grads and Students, Please Feel Free to post your questions here:

dnw826 · Jul 10, 2006

I would never judge someone for not breastfeeding. So I don't mean that I would treat my patients different! I just meant more with hospitals which are like the ones that I mentioned. All of the OB nurses that I have known and worked with (I worked in an RE office) were very pro-BF. Except at that one hospital. I guess that I just needed to know that they aren't all like that!

As a side note, what do you have to do to become a lactation consultant?Is it a master's program? I was looking into becoming a midwife or WHNP after I get some experience on the floor. Being a midwife runs in my family and I would love to do a mixture of midwifery and general gyn visits-like teen outreach and community education, etc. :)

What exactly do WHNP do? I have seen some very general descriptions. Thanks again!

prmenrs, RN · Jul 10, 2006

If you want to be a lactation consultant, check w/the local La Leche league to see where courses are. In my experience, they aren't cheap. So be prepared for that!

MIA-RN1, RN · Jul 10, 2006

I would never judge someone for not breastfeeding. So I don't mean that I would treat my patients different! I just meant more with hospitals which are like the ones that I mentioned. All of the OB nurses that I have known and worked with (I worked in an RE office) were very pro-BF. Except at that one hospital. I guess that I just needed to know that they aren't all like that!
As a side note, what do you have to do to become a lactation consultant?Is it a master's program? I was looking into becoming a midwife or WHNP after I get some experience on the floor. Being a midwife runs in my family and I would love to do a mixture of midwifery and general gyn visits-like teen outreach and community education, etc. :)
What exactly do WHNP do? I have seen some very general descriptions. Thanks again!

I am not sure about a WHNP but I did look into the lactation consultant info at my hospital. There is a one-week class to be certified as a lactation counselor, I got a brochure from http://www.healthychildren.cc (The center for breastfeeding) To be a lactation counselor, it is a more big deal and I know that you have to have a degree of hours as well as take boards. I think that is thru the ILCAC (? I might have those letters mixed up).

Good luck! :)

enfermeraSG · Jul 14, 2006

I would never judge someone for not breastfeeding. So I don't mean that I would treat my patients different! I just meant more with hospitals which are like the ones that I mentioned. All of the OB nurses that I have known and worked with (I worked in an RE office) were very pro-BF. Except at that one hospital. I guess that I just needed to know that they aren't all like that!
As a side note, what do you have to do to become a lactation consultant?Is it a master's program? I was looking into becoming a midwife or WHNP after I get some experience on the floor. Being a midwife runs in my family and I would love to do a mixture of midwifery and general gyn visits-like teen outreach and community education, etc. :)
What exactly do WHNP do? I have seen some very general descriptions. Thanks again!

I don't know about the lactation consultant, but midwife is a master's program. Midwifes handle office/clinic visits and do the prenatal care for their pts, plus come to the deliveries. WHNP (I'm assuming that is Women's Health Nurse Practitioner) only do the the office/clinic stuff - in other words they aren't catching babies. SG

mitchsmom · Jul 14, 2006

As a side note, what do you have to do to become a lactation consultant? Is it a master's program? :)

It is not a master's program; the guidelines for becoming a lactation consultant are found at the IBLCE (The International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners):

http://www.iblce.org/

(click on the "certification" tab)

Here's the link for "Becoming a Lactation Consultant":

http://www.iblce.org/become.htm

Here is some of the requirement info:

To be eligible to be a candidate for the exam, you must:

-either be an appropriately qualified health professional (see website)

OR have completed background education in certain disciplines (see website; includes anatomy and physiology, sociology, Psychology, counseling or communication skills, child development, nutrition, medical terminology);

-have completed comprehensive continuing education in lactation (see website- a minimum of 45 hours of continuing education in lactation (CERPS) reflecting the exam blueprint); and

-have had extensive practical experience providing breastfeeding counseling.

For this part, most people fall under one of the two following pathways, although there are 5 pathways and two more supplementary paths:

Pathway A – 2500 BC (breastfeeding counseling) hours required.

This pathway is available only if you have successfully completed at least 4 full years (120 semester hours) of post-secondary education, OR you have a bachelor or higher degree (in any field).

Pathway B – 4000 BC hours required.

This pathway is available if you have successfully completed at least 2 full years (60 semester hours) of post-secondary academic credit OR you have an associate degree OR you are a diploma RN.

Another thing people ask about a lot is "what should I read"? Here is the IBLCE's suggested reading list:

http://www.iblce.org/reading%20list.htm

Here's ILCA's (International Lactation Consultant Association) list of lactation course providers:

http://www.ilca.org/education/courselistings.php

Best wishes - feel free to pm or email me if I can maybe help you-

"mitchsmom", IBCLC, RLC

readysetgo · Jul 22, 2006

Mugwump had a great idea offering services to new grads as a mentor (thank you for that!)
So, I thought having a "sticky" for new grads, OB nurses, students, and others with questions who want to post these can do so here. We also seem to see many of the same questions over and over, so perhaps this would help serve as an ongoing discussion of common issues/questions we all seem to have on our minds. This could serve not just for those asking directly, but others who may be "lurking" and looking for information or considering a career in OB, newborn, GYN nursing, or midwifery, doula services, childbirth education, lactation consulting, or other related work.
So if any mod thinks this is a good idea, mind stickying this?
Let's give this a go and see how it works out. We have many potential "mentors" here among us who, I am sure, would LOVE to help a new nurse/midwife/doula or student on his or her way to a rewarding career. I know I would love to help out!

I have a question.

If baby weighs 6000 grams, How many kg is that and how did you solve?

Show me, please.

I got 7.7 kg and the right answer is 6 kg according to the test I took.

Thanks for your help.

wannabpeds · Jul 22, 2006

HI

i am a nursing student and was wondering do you ever get fake pregnacies. a few of my friends have this where their bodies have tricked them into believing that they are pregnant even though they did nothing to get this way.any info on this would be appreciated

babyrntobehopefully · Jul 26, 2006

I am trying to find out what you have to do after graduating with and ASRN to work in the labor and delivery ward. Please any info would be helpfull thanks so much :mad:

sunsky778 · Aug 10, 2006

I am a nursing student who is trying to get some information from other ob-gyn nurses. Can you give me some insight on what the lifestyle of a nurse in this field is like? For example time off, hours worked or shifts?

Thanks in advance

Jessica

MIA-RN1, RN · Aug 11, 2006

I am a nursing student who is trying to get some information from other ob-gyn nurses. Can you give me some insight on what the lifestyle of a nurse in this field is like? For example time off, hours worked or shifts?
Thanks in advance
Jessica

Hi Jessica. Where I work is like many other hospitals in that we have three 'main' shifts--7a - 3:30p; 3p - 11:30p; and 11p - 7:30a. Then there are 'off shifts' like 7a - 7p and 11a- 11p. Plus call time, which is anywhere from 12 - 16 hours per month. We have nurses who are part time,(36h/week), and per diem. We have to work four weekend shifts in a 4 week period, and at least two of those must be back-to-back (meaning a Saturday and the next day Sunday).

In my hospital, the nurses are all either postpartum or labor and delivery. Only a few have been cross-trained. Several nurses are in the special care nursery and some postpartum nurses have cross trained in there.

Time off--we get four weeks of vacation a year, accessible after 6 months. I am not 100% sure about sick time.

Hope this helps! :)

aurya8 · Aug 18, 2006

Can a new grad start his/her career off with a reputable agency or should he/ she always start their nursing career working directly for a hospital? What are the pros/ cons of each?

aurya8 · Aug 18, 2006

I am trying to find out what you have to do after graduating with and ASRN to work in the labor and delivery ward. Please any info would be helpfull thanks so much

Most hospitals require that you have at least 1 year of med/surg experience before taking on a specialty...