CARE OF THE LABORING PATIENT IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

Course overview

There are more than 4.5 million births annually in the United States. Childbirth is the leading reason for hospitalization, and maternity care is the leading reason for ambulatory visits. So it is common that Emergency Department (ED) nurses and practitioners will encounter caring for pregnant patients. The ED nurse in particular will not only help to facilitate optimal perinatal outcomes, but will also support the mother through an important and memorable time in her life. In this activity, we will provide the ED team with some critical concepts related to caring for the pregnant patient and fetus/newborn; we will discuss triaging the pregnant patient, stages of labor, delivery supplies and equipment, delivery of the newborn, potential delivery complications, and postpartum care of mother and newborn. After completing this activity, practitioners should be able to: state data collection and documentation requirements related to caring for the obstetric patient; list the stages of labor; state signs and symptoms of impending delivery; identify equipment needed to promote optimal perinatal outcomes; list steps taken in an emergency delivery; and describe signs and symptoms of several obstetrical complications and list therapeutic interventions appropriate to each complication reviewed.