Lamp Lady

I've been an L&D nurse since 1983 and can so relate. I have always said and will always say that God was very gracious to me that I didn't hurt anyone in my first couple years as a nurse. Things come up at work now (mostly not good ones) and I think back and thank God He kept my patients and my unborn patients safe while in my care.

Our dept just opened a new L&D unit. The manager sent an email out asking us if there was anything else we thought we needed to make our jobs easier or better. She still has an equipment allotment left. Any suggestions that any of you would make to your manager given the opportunity to ask for something?

"So tell me, what's on your heart?"

Have you given thought to a Certified Doula coming in and teaching them how to work with patients? I've been a Labor and Delivery nurse since the day I stepped out of nursing school in 1983. Though I had Mindi in 1982 with no epidural or medication; I was still unprepared to take care of these ladies. My choices were listen to them cry, scream, swear, or worse or learn how to help them get through it the best way we could together. I later came to find out that actually what I had learned to do was be their doula but get paid by the hospital and be their nurse and reap the joys of a doula and the satisfaction in my heart that I had taken good care of my patients as I had been trained to do. For me it was a win win situation. I still get to help some of my patients keep it together until they get their epidurals or the patients that come in complete while we are waiting for the doctor to wake up and drive in (I work night shift in small hospitals). Almost 30 years later, my nursing is still my hobby not my job. The Doula idea is just a thought. Good Luck to you all!