Ugh! Delivered Baby On My Own The Other Day...

Specialties Ob/Gyn

Published

Total accident of course. Needless to say the attending was very angry about this.

This was a g2p1 lady. She had a 15-month-old at home. Of course even with an epidural, she had a ton of pressure with her contractions. The resident did a sve she was 10/100/0. Resident said it would be best to labor down so that patient wouldn't be pushing for hours. Patient was confused, miserable and very frustrated of course, practically in tears. I stayed with her for the next hour, helped her through her contractions and checked her again. Still at 0 station. So, I called the resident, can I do a test push with her, she is very miserable. Resident says, "sure, go ahead and start pushing with her, but let her know she can stop and rest if she needs to". So, I document this and start pushing with the patient. Doing a sve at the same time so I could feel if she was moving the baby. Not moving the baby with her pushes yet, so coached her on this. I can feel just minimal movement, and let patient know this when she asked. She asks how long I think it's going to be and I said I think it's going to be a while yet as baby is really not moving. Well, I think this is all the patient needs to hear because with her next contraction, she pushes that baby right on down. The labia begin to spread and I say, "well, awesome! ok, hold on, let's call the doctor to come in." (We use Voceras where I work and I was able to call the resident while I was sitting on the patient's bed). Resident is on her way, she calls the attending as well who is also in house, sleeping (this is 3 in the morning) With the next contraction, patient is not even pushing, the uterus is doing everything. Well, baby is now crowning and is continuing to make it's way out. I call out the room to get some help...Baby was out 30 seconds before resident is in room. Then 30 seconds later attending is in room.

I can't help but feel horrible this happened. The attending is livid with me. "I want to know why I stayed all night waiting to deliver my patient, but still missed the delivery??!!" I went over exactly what happened. I think the resident should have let the patient give some trial pushes when she did her sve and felt the patient was complete and at 0 station. Especially when the patient was so miserable.

I know this may not be the only time this happens, but not sure what else I could have done in this situation?

How did your first deliveries turn out? Any bad situations? Did you get repramanded? I talked to my clinical coordinator and she says, "hey, it happens. It's not the last time it's going to happen."

Specializes in CCU, OB, Home Health.

It sounds like you did everything exactly right. Laboring down is for when the epidural is effective, not for when some poor mom is miserable from being told not to push. And since he got there in time for the 1 min apgar, well, I'd take that timing to mean you did the best you could to get him there on time! Don't even worry about it!

Specializes in Infection Preventionist/ Occ Health.

As a side note, the Joint Commission has issued an advisory addressing bad behavior among health care professionals. Per one of our risk management people, this is mostly aimed at physicians who yell, scream, intimidate and throw things. Prima donna behavior should be included IMO because it impairs team communication. At first I wonder why they felt that they had to come out and say this in an advisory, but after a few personal experiences and stories by other nurses, I no longer need to wonder...

http://www.jointcommission.org/NewsRoom/NewsReleases/nr_07_09_08.htm

Congrats on a job well done.

Specializes in Trauma/Burn ICU, Neuro ICU.

Wow! You delivered a baby! Wonderful! Mother and baby doing well? Everything else is irrelevant. Well done.

Will he not get paid for the delivery since he wasn't there or what?

If it was a private patient of the attending, no, he probably won't get paid for the delivery if he wasn't in the room.

Don't feel bad. If he was that invested, he could have stayed in the room with his patient. He made the decision not to.

I haven't missed a delivery in quite a while (probably because I stay in the room with them :)), but I had one a couple of months ago that I almost missed. I checked a patient with a history of precip deliveries - without her nurse in the room, go ahead and slap my hand - and she was 6. I left the room to ask a nurse to get the delivery cart. I walk back in a minute later and the head was halfway out. It happens to all of us. Don't worry too much about it.

Hey, you did what you had to do, the Dr had no right to get pissy about it.

Don't tear yourself apart over this one. :)

Specializes in L&D.
I giggled too when i read your post. This is going to happen so many more times. I don't work at a teaching hospital but I delivered one last night with the doctor right next to me struggling to put his gloves on. He didn't get his gloves on til the whole baby was out. The fault in this situation lies with the resident that left the room and the attending should know that. Multips usually don't have to labor down. Especially if they are in that much pain. If the resident would have pushed a couple times with her right at first she would have delivered right then. Don't let that doctor get to you. That's why your clinical manager wasn't too worried about it. You did a GREAT job! :nurse: :yeah:

I agree with this. If the resident would have let the patient give some trial pushes, this wouldn't have happened. She would have delivered. The resident was tired (around 0300). I've had experiences with here where she doesn't make the best decisions when she's tired.

Thanks everyone for your encouraging words. :nurse:

Specializes in L&D.
Wow! You delivered a baby! Wonderful! Mother and baby doing well? Everything else is irrelevant. Well done.

Mother and baby were perfect, thanks. :)

Specializes in L&D.
If it was a private patient of the attending, no, he probably won't get paid for the delivery if he wasn't in the room.

Don't feel bad. If he was that invested, he could have stayed in the room with his patient. He made the decision not to.

I haven't missed a delivery in quite a while (probably because I stay in the room with them :)), but I had one a couple of months ago that I almost missed. I checked a patient with a history of precip deliveries - without her nurse in the room, go ahead and slap my hand - and she was 6. I left the room to ask a nurse to get the delivery cart. I walk back in a minute later and the head was halfway out. It happens to all of us. Don't worry too much about it.

As far as what I've been told, as long as she was there before the placenta came out, she is considered present for the delivery.

Specializes in Staff nurse.

The attending is livid with me. "I want to know why I stayed all night waiting to deliver my patient, but still missed the delivery??!!"

Well now, he did go to medical school and he knows babies don't wait for anything...he owes you an apology AND a big thank-you for taking care of his patient.:bow:

Specializes in OBGYN, Neonatal.

Granted I'm a M/B nurse and not an LD nurse but where is there any fault to you? Thank God you were there to catch LOL! And Coach most importantly. I mean ok yes I understand we are nurses and they are doctors but what are you supposed to do seal her legs shut and say NO NO NO you cannot push that baby out until the doc gets here?

I'm sorry they are mad at you, from my humble viewpoint you did nothing wrong. ((HUGS))

I've had deliveries with the doc in the room and they still didn't do the catching. We'd been pushing for a little while and not moving and doc says I'm going out here call me and he turns around to walk out and I say lets move your leg this way a little and see and bam a baby in my chest...oops...as Forrest Gump says it happens.

Specializes in Mother/Baby;L/D.

Usually we call our MDs in when our multip w/o epidural is like 8 cms (and moving fast of course)!! But all pts are diff..just watch out for those multips that can take of at ANY minute!!

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