A Night in Labor and Delivery...

Being away from the hospital for the past three years has given me a new love for my job.  A love and an appreciation had I not been away I'm sure I wouldn't have.  I work in a very small hospital. I love it...because you get experiences you would never have in a bigger hospital.  I know this..I've worked in bigger..and they are not necessarily better!  I love that not only do I get to admit my patients, I get to be their labor nurse, I get to be their recovery nurse, their post partum nurse AND their baby nurse.  I get to know my patients on a level I never could in a big hospital.  I also need to know how to revive a baby that's not breathing, start an IV on the teeniest of babies, and keep those little buggers warm, pink, and sweet until the NICU from about 45 minutes away can rush in and take those that need to go...

Wednesday night at work was one of those eye openers when I realize..I DID learn something over the years.  I DO know alot..and even when everything is crazy I STILL love my job.  Wednesday night was spent with "Rosie".  Rosie is a 27 year old first time Mom.  She has been coming in twice a week to have non stress tests done because she is a gestational diabetic.  A non stress test is a test we do just to be sure the baby is doing ok...we hook her up to the monitor and see how often the baby moves, and if the heart beat increases for brief periods of time.  The movements and increases mean the baby is doing ok.  Well at the last NST Rosie's had another test done called a biophysical profile.  This is an ultrasound that measure babies growth, movements, the amniotic fluid level, babies tone, and babies breathing...teamed with the NST it gives us a score as to how baby is doing.  If it's to low..we induce labor.  Rosie's score was to low.  so we induced.  I spent all of Tuesday night with Rosie.  Trying to get her labor going.  She and her husband were excited...a bit shell shocked yet..as they thought it would be at least another week, and tired.  They were able to get a little sleep here and there...but as you can imagine, the mix of emotions made it pretty difficult. 

I returned to work Wednesday night.  Poor Rosie was still in labor.  Things were not looking good.  Rosie had just about every tube hooked to her you could imagine.  Yet...I was still able to find a few more we didn't have on her...and add them through the course of the night!  Rosie's babies heart beat wasn't look good.  Normally babies heart rate should be between 110-170.  Rosie's baby was dipping down into the 80's for periods of up to 4 minutes.  I'd have loved to see Rosie have a c-section and a healthy baby.  Rosie's doctor however decided to try to weather the storm..shall we say.  The babies heart rate would go back up..and look pretty good for extended periods of time..Then tick tick tick...go back down.  BUT finally...finally..at 5:30 in the morning...36 hours after Rosie had been admitted...she was complete..she was ready to start pushing.  And push she did...one hour and seven minutes later...Rosie's baby's head was delivered.  Sure enough...the umbilical cord was wrapped around this little guys neck...when the doctor went to slip it over the babies head...SNAP...the cord broke.  Let's just say...this is not good.  This is not good at all.  BOTH Mom and baby can bleed to death...baby EXTREMELY quickly...And trust me...when a doctor says he needs help...you help!!!  We had blood everywhere...and I mean everywhere...BUT we snapped both ends of that cord tight...and I'm more than happy to say..both Rosie..and her beautiful son David...where fine!!!  Had  worked in a big hospital I'd of had all sorts of resources there to help..NICU, for one...for baby David.  BUT it was just one of my amazing friends and coworkers, the doctor, and little old me!  And thanks to our quick work...everyone was just fine!!  Housekeeping wasn't real happy with us...can you say scene from a horror movie..SERIOUSLY!  But Mama, Baby, and the new Daddy where great.  Doctor and nurses were happy...and there was no c section involved.

Last night I was able to care for Rosie and David all night long.  They were our only patients left on the unit.  I was the only nurse working.  I spent my night rocking and feeding David so that Mommy and Daddy could sleep.  As I looked at this sweet baby boy...I couldn't help remember the events from the night before.  I told him how he was scaring this old nurse and how happy she was when he was born and ok!  I wondered what his life had in store for him.  I prayed for him..I prayed for his Mommy and Daddy.  Maybe it was PMS..or maybe it was just because last night I didn't know what our outcome was going to be...and tonight I was holding this beautiful baby....but I had a stray tear fall down my cheek.

When Rosie was in labor..on one of the few times I actually left her room, I asked her if there was anything I could get her.  She laughed, despite all the tubes, and exhaustion..and said..A BROWNIE!!!  Guess what I brought her last night...oh yea...a Brownie!  I couldn't have done that in a big hospital!!!  Have I mentioned I love my job???