Labor and Delivery Journal

Jamilynn Jones
Youngstown State University
St. Joseph’s Hospital Labor and Delivery Unit
Marsha Lapolla
October 10th, 2023
 On this day at clinical I had the amazing opportunity to assist in care for a vaginal delivery. I

have never experienced anything like this, and I will remember this day for the rest of my life. I

believe this has influenced me as a nurse for not only caring for a patient, but being their support,

guide, and a hand to hold when they do not have one. Justing and Jenny were also caring for this

patient and I am beyond grateful to have experienced this with them. We got to meet the mother

before things got too crazy and she was very calm and relaxed, only in a little bit of pain. The

nurses had Pitocin running and periodic morphine doses to give for pain. The patient was around

3cm when we first stepped on the unit and later progressed very rapidly due to the doctor

rupturing her membrane. The process after this lasted only around and hour and a half before

baby arrived. Her contractions were very strong and increasing in frequency, duration, and

intensity very quickly. Watching this patient give birth was a memorable moment and I am so

grateful to be in this profession.

Nursing skills and competencies utilized were vitals on the mother, application of baby heart

monitor on the abdomen, analyzing babies heart rate and rhythm on the monitor as well as

contractions. Another nursing skill used was interpreting accelerations, decelerations, and

variabilities the duration of labor start to finish. After the baby was born, APGAR scoring,

measurements, and reflex testing were all utilized to assess the baby at the bedside.

A nursing diagnosis utilized this day was acute pain related to increasing uterine contractions

secondary to labor and delivery as evidenced by verbalized pain rating 9 of 10, inability to focus,

increasing respirations, and increasing complaints of pressure. Another nursing diagnosis utilized

was anxiety related to fear of unexpected outcomes and fear of pain as evidence by expression of

concerns, alterations in vital signs, and expressed feelings of inadequacy.

 During this experience I learned many new things that I will never forget, but if I had to pick

the most significant learning experience it would be the emotional and influential part of

childbirth. Everyone experiences pregnancy differently and whether a patient has a significant

other or not, they deserve all the support they can get, especially during times like this. High

emotion and intense fear can alter a lot of things to go wrong during procedures. I had the honor

to be a supporter of this mother giving birth and I would do it all over again, even if it meant

squeezing my hand until it broke. On this day I learned how to put everything aside and be there

for this mother who was a complete stranger to me before I walked in that room. The greatest

learning experience for me was realizing what it takes to provide for the patient in every way

especially emotionally.

“Demonstrate critical thinking, ethical decision-making, and therapeutic inter-personal skills

while caring for childbearing families & women in diverse settings.” I believe I met this this

objective by critically thinking when the nurse, doctor, or patient would express interventions or

tasks that needed done, ask questions, or direct answers. This was a diverse setting due to the

mothers family support not be traditional and the patient not wanting an epidural. I believe I did

a good job in this situation supporting the mother with all her needs emotionally and physically,

while also assisting the nurses and doctor when needed.

“Implement effective interpersonal skills with acute or chronically ill childbearing family

members, women clients & their families, peer, and health team members.” Having an

interpersonal relationship with my client during the time of clinical was one of the major things I

took pride in on this day. I felt as though I was one of the support systems that helped this

mother get through childbirth.

 “Demonstrate professional accountability, reliability & responsibility while implementing

health focused, nursing care that incorporates professional organization’s standards of care and

Patient’s Bill of Rights” I felt as though I was accountable for implementing health focused

nursing care and providing my patient with accountable and professional standards of care. This

was implemented with respect and positivity for all care for my patient giving birth.

“Integrate relevant evidence based nursing research into the planning & implementations of

nursing care for childbearing families & women” Evidence based research was used on this day

by utilizing comfort measures with repositioning and use of the peanut ball to aid in labor

progression. This method is used often to help women dilation progress.

Overall I had an amazing experience on this day of clinical because I have never experience

child birth before. In the past I have had connections with patients, but this was a different level.

I was an advocate for this patient and assisted with walking her through breathing exercises

when her contractions were very strong, talked her through the pain, helped explain rationales for

what she was experiencing and actions of those she did not understand. I am very proud of

myself and my patient. I cannot wait for the next time I get to experience this.