OB/PEDS Rotation

West_Coast_Ken, BSN, RN · May 8, 2006

Hey guys. To put this lightly...I'm freakin' out on the Labor and delivery rotations. Did anyone else have this problem? I'm just so uncomfortable there and I know.. I'm gonna have to get through this somehow. Estrogen overload!!! I don't know what to do...I guess just go through with it.
I went into a 21 year old post-pardom patient's room and couldn't do an assessment. Her military husband's there next to her and I just felt so uncomfortable.

Hey, I hear ya. I just finished my OB/Peds rotations this semester and I don't know yet what kind of nursing I want to focus on--but I do know what I don't want to have anything to do with...OB!! (Peds might be cool, though).

The one and only labor & delivery I was in on the husband and wife did not want a male nurse there...so of course I quickly and quietly left the room and a few minutes later in walks a MALE doc...no problem there it seems. Go figure.

Anyway, I have a bit of an issue with the huge focus placed on nursing for what is a normal condition: pregnancy. I know things can go wrong, etc, and I know pregnancy can be a delicate time for mom and baby. I've seen several (8) live births before so I didn't miss anything by being tossed from the room but I wonder how loud they'd scream if a male told a female "you are not welcome here because you are a female"?

Do the best you can, be professional and know you MUST do what you need to (assessments, etc) to become a well rounded new nurse.

Regards,

Ken

xperiment626 · May 26, 2006

I work on the Mother-Baby unit at my hospital and am assigned to the post-partum care section frequently.

I have only had two patients not want me as thier nurse due to me being male. In all actuality, I find that the fathers seem more at ease...i know where they are coming from...I have two kids of my own. So this seems to help.

Also, i just try to go into my rooms with a professional and caring attitude...thats really all you can do. Oh! and dont take it personally if the patients are uncomfortable with you as their nurse...its their problem...not yours.

DONN · May 30, 2006

Dont feel bad I hated my rotation there and didnt get to see a dam thing for the week I was there. Not one person would let us in to view the delivery and frankly I could care less. I sat at the nurses station for a solid week and studied NCLEX questions. When the time came for our review of our experience I tolr my instructor what happened and she didnt have a problem with it. I just hope I never have to "float" there. Give me a cardiac patient anytime...........

xperiment626 · May 31, 2006

Where are you all located at? As I said earliet, I work on the mother/baby floor and havent had any problems like that. That seems kind of strange to me...I mean, someone mentioned earlier that most of the patients have male OB docs...so why is a Male nurse any different?

I am the only male that works on my floor at the moment and after i take my boards, I will be moving into the NICU...only had two patients that didnt want me as their nurse due to the fact that i am a male.

The majority of my patients are comfortable with me being their nurse, i find it is the docs that seem to have the biggest problem with me being there...but thats just me and my situation...not sure if it helps any, but i do understand where yall are comin from...i was freaked out to be there on my rotations, but now that I am employed there....i love it...wouldnt want to be anywhere else!

nursedude1 · Jun 28, 2006

From someone who just finished a 2-year stint on an OB/GYN unit, this post is disheartening. While I can certainly understand some nervousness and discomfort on the student's part, the nursing staff (as well as the clinical instructor) could have done more to provide a good learning environment. I was fortunate enough to land my first nursing job on a unit with a bunch of FANTASTIC ladies who helped me work around the whole "man on a woman's floor" issue. Very few patients had any problem whatsoever with me as their caregiver. I lost count of the patients who told me that they preferred to have me over the ladies...

No, this brand of nursing is not for everyone, but I think that we do our patients and our students a real disservice by perpetuating the myth that "this is really a girl's job". We're just as capable as the ladies are of providing good care to our patients. Let's open our minds up to the possibilities that arise when we truly break down the gender barriers.

L.O.E.N. · Jul 3, 2006

I wasn't allowed to do most stuff on my OB clinincals because I'm a guy. Pt's were uncomfortable, and so was I. I wound up changing bed linens most of the day I had L&D and Postpartum... no one wanted a male nurse. This was in Lubbock, TX. I enjoyed NICU, but that was the only high point. The rest was not fun. I just grin and bear it, thinking that it'd be over soon and I wouldn't have to do it twice.

If nursing school has showed me anything about where I'll work I know a few things for sure.... I will not work OB and I won't do nursing homes.

West_Coast_Ken, BSN, RN · Jul 3, 2006

I wound up changing bed linens most of the day I had L&D and Postpartum... no one wanted a male nurse.

Regarding "no one wanted a male nurse" I experienced this, also, dispite being very respectful of privacy issues, etc.

One of our clinical RNs has worked many years in OB and she said:

1) It is wrong and silly to toss a male nurse from OB.... and

2) How a patient accepts any caregiver is usually determined by how they are presented to the patient.

eg "Do you want a male student nurse to watch your lady partsl childbirth today, Tristen?" Vs. "This is Ken, a student nurse, and he has been assigned to work with us today."

I experienced the above myself during two pediatric clinic rotations on seperate days at different facilities opperated by the same provider. One day I shadowed the nurses the other day I was assigned to shadow the pediatrician. The difference how both very experienced medical professionals approached the pts regarding a student being in the room was striking. The nurse while direct, professional and very kind to everyone seemed to almost leave any opening to the pt to not want either a student or a male in the room while the doctor stated flatly, this is Ken and he is observing today. I have no doubt if the doc's pts has said they were uncomfortable with me I would have been asked to wait outside, but not one did the whole day, unfortunately, with the nurse, several said they'd rather I not be present.

So, please, nurses don't appologize to anyone for either having a student or a male working with you to anyone. Know that we, too, must learn "hands on" as students just like all nurses have had to.

Regards,

Ken

Disclaimer: Please know that I fully respect a pts right to refuse anyone they don't like for any reason to provide their care. All I ask is we treat everyone like professionals (or soon to become professionals) and not give pts a reason, even if unintentional, to ask not to be cared for by a male or a student.

CoolhandHutch, MSN, RN · Jul 4, 2006

How a patient accepts any caregiver is usually determined by how they are presented to the patient.

Never were truer words spoken. I hated my OB rotation because there was always that 'out' given..He's a male student nurse. Frankly, I didn't give a rip at the time. However, for those guys that have to endure, here's a piece of advice: Know your stuff and be confident. Speak from a position of authority, not that of a student. Be comfortable. You're almost done.

mlnrs1 · Jul 7, 2006

I was a little freaked out when my ob/peds rotation was approaching, mostly because my instructor made such a big deal of it. My class only had two guys in it and we were basically expected to just sort of put in our time, stand against the wall and not get involved with anything...

I pushed the issue just because I thought it was discriminatory. Female nurses have been taking care of men as long as there have been female nurses. All through my program, female students were assigned to care for men and nobody thought anything of it.

So I pushed to get myself involved... I did everything any ob nurse does, I saw two lady partsl births, two c-sections, I did assessments (pre + post), helped with showers, toileting, sitz baths, etc. Throughout the whole time, I never encountered a patient that had a problem with it.

In retrospect, maybe it was dangerous to put myself in those situations (alone in a bathroom with a young, female pt. helping her shower) just because I could have easily been accused of doing something inappropriate... but at the time it was all about wanting to do it just because I was told I couldn't.

I have some psych experience, and ended up being a big help in a couple of difficult situations (mom/baby positive for drugs, adoption planned). Although I'd never want to work on ob/peds, it was one of the most rewarding experiences I had in school.

PANurseRN1 · Jul 7, 2006

In retrospect, maybe it was dangerous to put myself in those situations (alone in a bathroom with a young, female pt. helping her shower) just because I could have easily been accused of doing something inappropriate... but at the time it was all about wanting to do it just because I was told I couldn't

Not only was it dangerous because of the potential for accusations of improper conduct, it was dangerous because you made your personal needs primary. That clouded your judgement.

It isn't about you...it's about the patients. That goes for every nurse.

nursemike, ASN, RN · Aug 1, 2006

I was pretty nervous in OB, as well. I don't think I was ever actually refused, though I recall one male classmate was (instructor was a little ticked at the nurse midwife for asking a loaded question, as described in other posts--our instructor was very gung-ho that we belonged in there just like any other student) but as it happened, births were just scarce on the days I had clinicals, so I never did get to see one. Did do new-born assessments, which scared the pee out of me, and post-partum care, which was a little awkward, but we got through it.

Although I support the general view that professionalism can overcome most male-nurse/female patient issues, including OB, I am also of the view that nursing is a human endeavor, and as such, we are allowed to be human. In most instances, I think we should actually be encouraged to be human. So, in school, and especially now in practice, I see nothing wrong with frankly acknowleging the potential for embarassment and discussing with the pt how best to minimize it. As one mother of seven put it, I wasn't the first man to see her, but she didn't really need a lot of instruction on breastfeeding.