OB Education Day

Today at work we had a whole day of simulations, drills and re-certifications. It was one more thing on my plate to study for and prepare for, so I'm glad it is over. But, it was actually a great day as far as learning opportunities go.

To begin we went in and took our NRP neonatal resuscitation examination right off the bat. Can we say stressful?!?! I felt very good about most of the questions until I got to the sections that covered the skills I don't routinely use because we have a NICU that responds to our intubation and prematurity needs. So, I was sweating it a little bit towards the end, and was glad to have that certification out of the way for 2 more years!

Then we rotated through various workshop/stations throughout the remainder of the day.
First I went to a respiratory class/workshop. We reviewed the basic lung sounds heard and the characteristic and causes of each. Mainly focusing on coarse and fine crackles as they are what we are continually assessing for as a sign of pulmonary edema in the women receiving fluid boluses, mag & pitocin.

Then, I went to a postpartum hemorrhage class. This was one of my favorites. We had a simulation where each of us had to be in charge and SBARR our help who arrived and organized the whole effort. We reviewed causes including uterine atony, retained placental fragments, trauma like lacerations, etc, and thrombine disorders. We went through all of the interventions we should be prepared to carry out like 2 large bore IVs, O2 via non-rebreather mask, Labs (PT, aPTT, INR, Fibrinogen, type & cross for 2 units), and medications/dosages (methergine, hemabate, pitocin & cytotec).

Next was lunch...we all went to subway.

Then I attended a session on CPR/CPR on the pregnant woman, including perimortem cesarean sections, which I pray I never, ever have to be a part of. According to recommendations, a cesarean section should be preformed within 4-5 minutes of a woman coding - right there in the room. Scary stuff.

Finally, I went to the neonatal resuscitation session where we did our mega codes. We each took a turn being in charge of the code and walked right through various scenarios including PPV, chest compressions, intubation and umbilical venous catheters for pushing volume expanders and meds. It was good to get my hands into the crash cart and locate all of the supplies, etc as it is not done unless needed usually.

So, overall, I truly enjoyed the day of practice and review. I feel fortunate to have a position at this hospital. They are organized and value important things like the education and continued training of the nursing staff. It was a good (yet long) day.