I'm a postpartum nurse on the night shift. Most nights, I have an assignment of 4-6 mothers and their babies. On an average, quiet night, I round on all my patients, doing vital signs and assessments. Then I assess all of their babies. Throughout the night I medicate my patients, feed their babies or assist them with learning to breastfeed, and get my post-op patients up and moving. Then I chart. And chart. And chart some more.
About once a week, I stay in the nursery and just assess, feed, diaper, and admit babies. People think night shift is quiet and boring (one patient recently asked a coworker of mine where we slept-as if!) but the same emergencies and procedures can happen night or day (and the babies need to eat!). Plus, we tend to have less staff on at night.
|