OB Nurses at my hospital

SUCKED when I had Cate. Yes we had a great birth, but I never posted what happened before and after she was born! Check this out:

I told my labor nurse that I was supposed to get iv antibiotics. I was cutoff and told twice my beta strep was negative and then I was told we do not pre-treat infections around here. Sure enough I got a kidney infection right after delivery that required antibiotics to treat. I ordered my medical records. I always get a copy now after any hospital stay or procedure. Nowhere in my records is it listed that the nurse contacted Dr. X to ask about the antibiotics. I was also told when I was asking about the antibiotics, “what do you want, your epidural or antibiotics”. In fact, when I asked about the antibiotics, the nurse never said let me go check on that for you. She automatically cut me off and said we don’t pretreat infections around here.

In the past, I have had uterine infections after delivery and gyn surgery. Currently, I have a kidney stone stuck in the right ureter. The drs did not want to do surgery to remove it due to pregnancy. Two urologists that I consulted during pregnancy recommended IV antibiotics during delivery because they said I would get an infection. Dr. X when I discussed this with him said he would use iv antibiotics as well during the delivery. Somehow he forgot about that and didn’t write the order.

At one point, I was watching the monitor and told my husband that my blood pressure was still high. The nurse said “then don’t look at it” and snapped the machine off.

The labor nurse told me that she had personally reviewed my chart and labs and according to her I was not pre-eclamptic. I don’t know what labs she was looking at. However, the labs that I had – uric acid and creatine levels were high. These were not in my file. My urine protein was increasing each week. In addition, according to the peri, I had central nervous system involvement because of headaches, vision issues, nosebleeds, and brisk reflexes. The peri said cns involvement was more indicative of a seizure than protein.

The same nurse also told that I knew too much about my meds. I am not sure what the nurse meant or was implying, but I would hope that I would know what meds I am on as a patient. During the morning, she made us feel very unwelcome and uncomfortable. The only time the labor nurse was polite to us was when Dr. X was in the room and during the actual delivery.

I had an enormously difficult time in getting the fiorinal for my headaches that Dr. X ordered. It is in several places in my chart that he ordered it. Yet the nurses did not seem to want to give it to me. I took fiorinal from Jan 2nd on because of severe headaches. So this was not a new drug to me. The labor nurse tried to talk me out of the fiorinal and to take tylenol instead. That was a mistake because the fiorinal kept the headache to a pain level I could handle. Taking the Tylenol instead made it worse and took longer to control it. I had one nurse tell me that she could not believe that Dr. X would ever order it for a patient. I assured her that he had and she needed to check my chart (in fact he ordered it when I delivered my last daughter for the same reason!). I had another nurse tell me that she was uncomfortable in giving it to me because I had a codeine allergy and that fiorinal contained codeine. She is right, there is a fiorinal that does contain codeine. However, I was prescribed plain fiorinal (green and lime capsule) not fiorinal with codeine (yellow and blue capsules). I told her it was prescribed and to please bring it to me and I didn’t really care about her comfort level only mine.

Dr. X and I had discussed in the office about preventing PPD after delivery. I had it with my second daughter. I was worried about getting it again. In addition, it was the one year anniversary from when we lost a baby at 13 ½ weeks. I knew that crashing pp hormones, new baby, death anniversary was a recipe for trouble. Dr. X agreed. It was not easy for me to ask for help for this. I tend to think I can handle it all on my own. It wasn’t me who got help the last time it was my husband who sought it. I am not comfortable admitting I would need help with this. So it was a big deal for me to bring it up and discuss with Dr. X. In fact, it took me several visits to be able to get up the nerve to discuss it with him. When the nurse brought me the effexor, she told me “you know it is normal to feel this way”. I told her thank you for the medicine. She may not have thought she was saying a big thing. However, it was hard enough to ask for help. I didn’t need someone to minimize or judge what I went through with my other daughter and tell me this was normal. This was between me and my dr. We both felt that I would need something to help. What I went through with her was anything but normal. The nurse should have kept the opinion to herself.

After delivery, the night nurse that I had was helping me get up to go to the bathroom and get a shower. I remembered from when I had my other daughter that I was given a bag that had OTC meds in it and it was logged in on a sheet. I asked her for the dermoplast spray. I was told that it was not ordered as I didn’t have stitches. I had to ask for a peri bottle several times so that I could go to the bathroom and not have it burn as bad. I also asked her for motrin for cramping and was told that was not ordered either. I ended up having my husband bring me in motrin from home and taking it. I didn’t tell the nurses. Imagine my surprise when I pull my medical records and find out that not only was the dermoplast spray ordered by Dr. X, but so was motrin and lortab. It’s like the nurses never even read my records.

On Saturday night, I broke out in a rash on my arms. I showed the nurses and they immediately called Dr. X and he prescribed Benadryl. However, the Benadryl did not work. Two hours later I was covered with the rash on my face, chest, arms, and legs. When I went back to the nurses station, the nurses had changed shift. Their reaction was so what (yes I was actually told that). I had to explain to them that I had started a new med today (effexor) and that Dr. X said I was having an allergic reaction to one of its components. I had taken Benadryl and it was not working. Could they please call him and get something else ordered. They didn’t want to move and call him. After me asking several times, they finally called him and he ordered a different med and that worked to get rid of the rash.

On Sunday, my discharge paperwork was messed up. I got that straightened out. Then I realized I had never been given the paperwork to do the birth certificate. I asked and the nurse said she thought I had filled it out the day before. I told her no. No one had given me anything for it. So we ended up having to get that done quickly. I also did not have the bloodwork that was ordered to be drawn on Saturday morning done.

At one point in labor, I was shivering and dh asked what was wrong with me. The labor nurse went UGGGGH, it's just her hormones. She left the room. Another nurse came in to check and make sure the warmer was in the room. Commented it was hot. Turned down the heat. DH and I looked at each other like WTF. I told HIM to go and turn the heat back up. Yet the labor nurse documented that she gave me extra warm blankets and turned up the heat. WHAT. She did none of that!!!! I wasn't given ANY extra blankets during my stay.

I have to say that I thought the hospital stay with Kirsten was the worst ever. Hands down, my local hospital won with Cate. To think I stayed pregnant an extra 8 days just so I could deliver there. It was infuriating to read my records. Orders for meds were done and they were never given to me even when asked. That is just plain laziness. I debated about what to do. Should I complain about the care I received? Do I let it go? In the end I decided to file a complaint with the nurse manager of OB. I reasoned it by I always send thank you notes and cards when I get good care. Someone needed to know about the crappy care I got this time. There was NO excuse for it. There were only two patients on the floor on Friday, I was the only one there Saturday, and there were only two patients on Sunday. Only two rule out labor patients came in the whole weekend. There was just no excuse. The only bright spot was when I actually delivered Cate. Everything seemed to go right for that Thank God.

When I had my pp appt with my ob I said that the labor nurse sucked but he didn't comment. Course he has no recourse over the labor nurses at the hospital. I decided when I wrote the letter I did not want an apology. I wrote that I wanted to make sure it didn't happen to another mom. What if I had taken the labor nurse's advice and her saying there wasn't anything wrong with me and I just said ok, I am going home then. Cause I wanted Cate to stay in but my drs were like nope. So I wrote everything out that happened, good and bad (cause the baby nurses ROCKED), why decisions were made the way they were and what happened. I decided I pay for those services. I wouldn't treat someone like that at all!

If I ever have another baby or have gyn surgery at my hospital, I am sure they are going to be booting me out the door now that I have complained and I am sure I have royally screwed myself now. I know eventually I will be having another GYN surgery. Well dh is just about talked into Baby #4 next year. However he has some demands that have to be met first such as a new house and maid.