debsgreys

the main one I love, my Bible for OB, Perinatal Nursing by Kathleen Simpson. Also Straight A`s in Maternal Neonatal Nursing, and Maternal Newborn Reviews and Rationales. These two gave me practice questions. I also used CE direct for practice. I have been out of nursing school for many many years, but an OB nurse for 33. So I really had to refresh the why I do what I do. Hope this helps. Best of luck!!!

We usually have three couplets, or two couplets an ante and NICU mom. We try to stay at five or six patients. Right now I work day shift so you may go over while your one discharge has not left yet. We have no CNA or tech. It definitely keeps you moving, especially since we will be having a visit from the "Baby Friendly" staff in the spring and the state any day now. Night shift runs with the same staffing ratio. Our patients stay in L&D for two hours after delivery. Hope this helps you.

I could have written this topic! I have been in the OB field for 33 years! It found me, after working on a GYN floor part time, I returned to work to find out I would be working in the nursery every other weekend. Back then orientation was 2 shifts. I stayed there 18 years, than went to L&D. Mother baby is my love for about the last 8 years. I too was not enjoying the stressful situations and very fast pace. I am at the end of my career and enjoy caring for moms and their babies in what I call it the only time in life where a woman is taken care of. Yes I am in the minority at work, our L&D nurses rotate to the unit, using a log book. LOL Best of luck to you!

We always have an admission nurse at each delivery. We are in the process of becoming Baby Friendly ( I do not like the term). She does meds, admission asses. etc. Our moms stay in L&D for 2 hours.They both are transferred to our M/B unit. The baby never leaves the room. We have even done skin to skin in the OR, if mom and baby are stable. If not baby meets up with mom in RR. Our patients are informed at their early prenatal visits of the process of mom/baby. Rarely do we have complaints that there is no nursery for their baby to go to at night.

Go back to your true love and life with your family will work out, because you will be happy in your career choice.

A UDS is done on every patient that is admitted. Oh yea I have heard many excused. Positive for cocaine, I think I used the straw that was up my boyfriends nose (gross )

WoW, I could have written the question asked. We are 3/4 through becoming Baby Friendly, how I hate that term though.We just went back to doing couplet care, which I love when we have the proper staff. I agree the education needs to begin during prenatal care. We allow one person to spend the nite with mom and have changed our introduction form they receive in L&D to explain what is expected of the person staying with mom. We are not a hotel for them to sleep all nite. I really enjoy reading what others are doing with this change. I have worked in OB for over 32 years, so I am close to retiring.

I am so happy to see nursing students living in my area. I will retire in about five years. I went to GCC out of high school, and completed the program in two years. I believe we had three students out of class about 75 complete in the two years. But like I told my daughter 40 years ago the medical field was not as complicated as it is now. Just think what has happened in the last forty years in medicine. Best of luck to all of you!! I predict a shortage in the next ten years. There are at least five in my department my age. LOL

We hire nurses with no previous OB experience. They have a an orientation to WBN, M/B. If they are hired for L&D they orient there for quite a while. Sometimes when nurses bring there experience it may be different, say from a teaching hospital to a non. I am near retirement and pray my replacement would be a nurse that really wants to be there experience or not. Best of Luck to all looking for OB

Is any literature given to mom on admission to floor? We give a big folder with lots of pamphlets regarding newborn care. Blood work we do, car seat safety, SIDS, Also contains a small booklet about feeding, using bulb syringe, taking temperature, etc. If so the information would be the same as the nurses caring for mom and baby. Good Luck and I hope you enjoy this unit. Teaching is a very big part on this unit, with such a short time to complete.

My brothers' name is Forrest Wood named after my dad, my grandfather middle name is Brick, thank God my mom did not name my brother Forrest Brick Wood

Sounds unsafe. We do postpartum / nursery at present. Usually 4-5 moms, no techs. We are working on becoming baby friendly so we are suppose to go to couplet care, praying for 1-3 not 3-4. Especially on day shift with so much teaching to be done and discharges that can consume so much time. I really don't know what to tell you to do, but it certainly is not fair to the pt

that is what I am afraid of, crazy&cuteRN,how can u give good care, all the teaching on the care plan, etc. with 10 pts??

I would love to know where you work melmarie23! LOL

At this time we are Postpartum/Nursery, with 5 moms, no CNA or tech.We are in the process of becoming " Baby Friendly", and realize we need to go back to couplet care. The staff has expressed their opinion on ratio numbers with all the care and teaching involved that 3 couplets it should be. We do have lactation, but limited hours on day shift. I will keep my fellow OB nurses informed of our progress. LOL

We are dealing with this issue right now. Working on the mother baby floor with no CNA, having up to 5 mom or GYN pt. Nursery nurse responsible for babies. Many times no US to answer the door on our locked unit. We carry phone for our pt to call. I mentioned in another post, actually asking and receiving input re; staffing since we are moving back again to couplet care and becoming baby friendly. I presented info at our Best Practice comm. mtg, that 3 couplets max to make this work without a CNA. I remember doing team nursing in the 70's, it worked on that floor at the time.

Study hard!!Are you taking a crash chem course in the summer?? If its one of the "short classes" they are tough.

Many years ago I started a sibling class. The children would see where mom would be, a book would be read, a pic was taken with them and a doll or stuffed animal. The hospital stopped the classes several years ago. We now give siblings big brother or sister stickers and a coloring book about bring a new baby home.

I work in south jersey, I always thought the hospitals in the area all made about the same. Interesting meganmc02 mmm got me thinking....

If this mother was a pt. in our Family Health Center, a social worker would be involved with her care.Who ever her OB care is when she delivered a social worker would meet with the mom. Because of her history with the first child, if she had an open DYFS case they would be involved, if not open given situation along with factors noted at time of delivery then DYFS may be called. Behavioral Health would also be involved. I am not very good At writing what I am trying to say, but please let me be clear, we would want her baby to be with her, that is the goal. Social Service can check her home etc. A big thanks to you nursepandra for not putting this pt. out of your mind after she left the office. This happens far to many times with short staffing and decrease staffing.

We recover our C/S pt. in L&D area where there is a 3 lead cardiac monitor and crash cart. All of the nurses in L&D are ACLS. We have 24 hour OB and anesthesia too. Right now we are working on becoming baby friendly so we encourage mom to do skin to skin in RR,of course if she is stable ex: not vomiting. Our discussions at work now is how to get baby to breast in the OR. The scheduled C/S go to a main OR, we have one in L&D for stats, and a second one is being built at this time. Before the C/S pt. leaves our RR anesthesia must see the pt again to D/C them to M/B floor.

Most of our OB docs are female, all our CNM are female. This year the residents, all 4 yrs. are female. Years ago we had a male nurse in L&D, I was on nites then, he worked day shift.

Nursing is and always should be about respecting the pt. We have had moms that want another child in the delivery room. This is discussed with nurse manager and like birth plans is attached to moms prenatals (sure copy is also with her) The same respect should also include the mom that request an epidural as soon as she can have one. The area I am from, majority want pain meds. Unfortunately in my 30+ years , I wish I had kept track of the birth plans vs. needing a C/S, seems to happen alot here. Like I said before go with your birth plan. We are all nurses here, all ages from all over giving our own thoughts.

Pinknblue, yes like I mentioned before its hectic, little time to eat, drink, etc. I have always taken care of my pts. as they were my sister, for years my daughter ( she is 36 ) LOL Oh no the rest of the hosp. has CNAs, we had them briefly over a year ago and it was greyt! Yes I always get my pt. up 1st, most of the time my assistant is amnonia salts You see our OB delivers average 1100/yr. so we are told our unit does not bring in much $$, so we are staffed for # pts. on floor, many times being put OC, if there is 5 couplets on floor its just you. L&D is right up the hall. Like I said before we always have a nursery nurse. Our Best Practice mtg. is next week and I want to bring all this info with me.

no, no jewels26 1st 4 hours on the floor are hourly then q 4 for 24 hours then q 8. I think my problem with staffing is the rest of the hospital has CNAs we do not. Infants vs q 4 for 1st 24 hours then q8