Heather, the same thing is happening on the labor and delivery unit that I work on, there are many nurses without any OB experience. I also think this is so unsafe, especially because when things go wrong on the labor floor, they go downhill quickly, and there's no time to waste. When you are dealing with a mother and baby's life, it's suppose to be a happy experience and memorable time in ones life.
Within the last year, we had a huge change over on the night shift, and there are many new nurses. Some nights, it's all new nurses and maybe one experienced nurse. The combination of staffing can be a scary one!! There is a two-step program that allows new nurses to work med-surg. and post partum before coming to labor and delivery, but with the resigning that happened last year, the night positions were available to any RN. Orientation to the labor and delivery unit, is three to four months, but is that really enough? Also, is it fair to the new nurse to have such high expectations right out of nursing school? It is scary enough and anxiety producing just being a new nurse, let alone, being on a high demand specialty such as labor and delivery, ICU, ED, etc..
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Pierre, 2012). Here are some ways preceptors and peers can help new graduates feel more comfortable:
•1.Arrange time away from the patient to review clinical judgments and decisions.
•2.Offer emotional support, especially during highly stressful times (errors, angry patients, shame from