Tired question but I gotta ask about OB clinicals

jb2u, ASN, RN · May 22, 2006

although my ob rotation was not as bad as i thought that it would be, i am glad it is over. the nurses on the floor, for the most part, were very accepting and stated that they would "love to have some male nurses on the floor." my patients did not mind having a male take care of them either, but i know that everyone is different. i work as a cna and had a woman that did not want me to transfer her from the bed to the BSC.

i hope you have a great experience!

jay

RussA, BSN, RN · Jun 6, 2006

It was a good experience going through L&D, postpartum, and newborn nursery. Liked the professionalism of the staff. I have to desire to work in the field, but thought it rounded out the curriculum - all that reading, made sense with the practical experience.

- And yes, I was asked to leave the room on two cases. Which I truly understand.

Daye · Jun 6, 2006

i am a female and wanted to add my as well.
from the patient point of view i hope none of you took it personally if the woman giving birth asked not to have you in the room. when i gave birth to my daughter i didn't want anyone in there but the nurse who was taking care of me, the dr and my hubby. now, by the time i had my son i didn't care if the whole world was in there!!:roll in fact, i was being prepped for a c-section because the cord was being pressed on by the babies head (it was circling the top of his head like a halo, but believe me he is no angel!!:roll )anywho....the dr must have made a unit wide announcement that there was some type of excitement in my room, she told me if i could give one more good push i wouldn't need to have a c-section, well i pushed and out he came....i looked up and there standing at the foot of my bed were 12 nurses/students and 4 of them were male! i didn't mind at the time, i was just glad it was over. i guess my point is some women just don't feel comfortable having men there other than hubby during such an intimate time. i'm sure you all realize that but i'm also sure it must be an awful feeling not to be able to participate in a very exciting part of the ob rotation.
as far as the nurses treating you badly i think that is an awful shame! we are all professional and it shouldn't matter if you are male or female!! there were nurses in my ob rotation that treated us females rotten too!!
and just to add a little note here....i have had a few experiences of being in the hospital, most recently last dec when i had kidney surgery and some of the best nurses i have ever had were male!! so keep up the great work!!

ditto, guy's are wonderful mostly, my favorite working buddies and student buddies were the guy's, if they give you grief try not to take it personally, after all it's their loss. hopefully you will have good clinical instructor's who can help you pick a pt who won't mind you being in the room with her. i truly hope you end up having a great summer and a rewarding rotation thru ob

K98 · Jun 13, 2006

We did a six week OB rotation, two days per week. Some of the women were uncomfortable, most weren't. I did get to spend some extra time in the newborn nursery . I knew going in that OB wasn't a career path for me, so I learned what I could and made the best of my time there.

AznMurse · Jun 13, 2006

I had a wonderful 6 weeks OB rotation and I think it was mostly because the CNM was a male! He was very well accepted by the patients and that somehow facilitated a tolerance toward me and 2 other male classmates on the floor!

JeffTheRN · Jun 19, 2006

I just finished my OB rotation last semester. I was the only male in my clinical group (4 males out of 100 students). The hospital was small (community hospital) and patients were scarce for the 5 weeks we were there. I felt completely out of sorts once we stepped foot on the wing. I, too, received some ominous glares from some of the RN's there, howver, most were great, warm and welcoming (a 180' from what we had heard about that hospital - never believe what you hear at first).

My problem was more with the patients. 5 weeks (5 clinical days) and the most I did on my rotation was give some motrin and assess some fundal heights. :stone 3 out of the 5 pt's I attempted to take care of did not want a male student (1 did not want a student at all). For what I was able to do (some meds, some p/p assessment and 2 newborn assessments) I enjoyed it. I love kids and could possibly see myself in the NICU setting eventually (my daughter was in the NICU for a week). It all depends on where you go and who your patients are. Some are open to males and some just don;t feel comfortable with a male taking care of them in that particular setting and that is completely understandable.

JohnBearPA · Jun 28, 2006

I had a fairly good OB rotation. I went into the rotation VERY uncomfortable, not having a clue as to what to expect, and of course expecting the worst, but I really enjoyed it at the end.

My first pt was to be a c/s, and needed a foley inserted. A female pt was called in to perform this, and my pt actually asked "where the hell is the guy that was just here? let him do it, he needs to learn too."

I did, however, turn beet red when I was doing a post-partum assessment, and asked the pt "how do your breasts feel?" as I was taught by my instructor. the pt replied "well, here they are, feel 'em for yourself and tell me!" while lifting them up in my direction. My instructor was in the room with me, and burst out laughing so hard she she almost passed out. That did serve to break the ice tho, and made me laugh when I left the room.

I also loved the nursery, and wish I had more than 6 weeks on that floor. All in all, it was great, you get to see something from the woman's point of view, and experience the miracle of life. Enjoy it!

Daye · Jun 28, 2006

i had a fairly good ob rotation. i went into the rotation very uncomfortable, not having a clue as to what to expect, and of course expecting the worst, but i really enjoyed it at the end.
my first pt was to be a c/s, and needed a foley inserted. a female pt was called in to perform this, and my pt actually asked "where the hell is the guy that was just here? let him do it, he needs to learn too."
i did, however, turn beet red when i was doing a post-partum assessment, and asked the pt "how do your breasts feel?" as i was taught by my instructor. the pt replied "well, here they are, feel 'em for yourself and tell me!" while lifting them up in my direction. my instructor was in the room with me, and burst out laughing so hard she she almost passed out. that did serve to break the ice tho, and made me laugh when i left the room.
i also loved the nursery, and wish i had more than 6 weeks on that floor. all in all, it was great, you get to see something from the woman's point of view, and experience the miracle of life. enjoy it!

:rotfl: lol how funny! it helps when everyone can have a sense of humor as long as it isn't at anyones expense. if it helps you any... it can be a little uncomfortable as a female nurse approaching these questions too just b/c it isn't routine until you've been there-done that several times and learn to be comfortable in your own skin. me too i love the nursery and like you, i would have enjoyed a longer rotation.:)

DONN · Jun 28, 2006

It bit. Not one person would let the few guys in our class do anything for them. The only positive thing was that the school had virtually no choice but to pass us thru the rotation because it was not our fault that we couldnt do anything there.

azhiker96, BSN, RN · Jun 29, 2006

We had 3 days in OB last block. My first day was in postpartum and it went well. I had a great nurse and got to DC a foley and removed staples from a C-section. The second day was pretty slow. I was in triage and the nurses there were not very receptive. All I got to do was clean up triage rooms, setup external monitors on a pt., and give a terbutaline injection. The third day was great! I was in delivery and worked with a hard as nails nurse, very businesslike who gives you one chance. We had a scheduled C-section show up 45 minutes late which put us under the gun to get everything ready in time for the docs. I did what I could to help while staying out from underfoot. We go the pt ready in time and then continued to surgery for a very good c-section. The nurse let me do the neonate assessment after delivery and Vit K injection and eye ointment. It was a terrific day.

The key I found was the nurses. Most of my classmates (females) had similar experiences in the different areas and one had a much worse time in triage. Patient receptiveness to students was directly correlated to how the nurse presented it. ie "This is George, he's a student nurse helping me today. Is that okay with you?" versus "I have a student nurse outside. You don't want a student nurse today do you?"

L.O.E.N. · Jul 4, 2006

I like NICU....that's it. 80% of my OB clinicals I was housekeeping basically. I just figured that I know I'm not working OB/GYN stuff after school, so I just did it, kicked butt on the tests, and got it over with.

....but NICU was fun... had an SVT baby that had an order for adenosine that i wound up having to give. Talk about freak-you-out... you give it and hold your breath hoping the kids' heart would start back up. If that doesn't scare the crap out of ya, nothing will. The mother was right outside the window too.... i was sweating. :lol2:

fishinNbanjo · Jul 8, 2006

My experience wasn't bad at all. I really liked the nursery, and I didn't have any problems with the moms that I had to take care of. I was worried as well though. But you just get through it. If anyone gives you crap just tell them that this isn't what you'de be doing if you could help it.

I never got any compliments for being a male, but I was only 21 at the time, and I guess I look a little young, and a couple nurses asked me if I was old enough to be in nursing school.