Week of Certifications

While working in OB, you need to maintain various certifications... Most of which you don't use on a daily basis.. some of which I've thankfully never had to put into practice... However, this past week I had to use my most recently obtained certification - TWICE...

A couple months ago I went to an ALSO conference and became ALSO certified. ALSO stands for Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics. and it covers various OB emergencies that arise occasionally that require additional training. Some topics covered include CPR in the pregnant woman (different than basic CPR), Perimortum C-Sections, Breech births, Postpartum hemorrhages, Shoulder dystocia, etc. Things you never want to have to deal with... But need to know how.

It was great to have the certifications "In my pocket" so to speak and know exactly what to expect/do when the situations arose. Not all of the nurses on our unit are ALSO certified, so not all of them knew exactly what steps to take... and it was reassuring to me that I did and was able to help others through the situations...

Everything went well with both situations and I wouldn't want to have to have them happen again... But, I'm glad I was there when they did happen, so that I could have the hands on experience under my belt and learn from them. I was in on a postpartum hemorrhage and a true shoulder dystocia.

In the postpartum hemorrhage situation, I was lucky enough to have a doctor there who is interested in my continued learning. He included me in the process the whole time... Took my suggestions and input and used it. And, afterward, he sat with me to process the situation so when I am there alone one day, I will be able to move quickly to the necessary steps.

All in all, certifications are a pain the butt to get and keep up on.. But in the rare cases they are needed... It feels good to kind of be on "automatic pilot" in an emergency and know exactly what steps are needed.