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OB Clinical: Vaginal Birth Journal

Makaela Giannini

Youngstown State University

NURS 3731L

Kelly Labra

February 23, 2021

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NURS 3731 CLINICAL JOURNAL FORM

Name: Makaela Giannini

Date of clinical experience: 2/23/2021

1. Overview of clinical experience:

During clinical this week I was able to see a vaginal delivery. I observed the birth of the baby,

the delivery of the placenta, the aftercare of mom, and some of the newborn’s care/assessments

that took place immediately after the birth.

a. Identify nursing skills and competencies observed/utilized for the day

I observed the nurse assisting the physician with the vaginal delivery, as well as

supporting/encouraging the mother during the delivery. After the birth, the nurse turned

the Pitocin on to stimulate the uterus to contract and massaged the fundus to prevent

hemorrhage. She also removed the epidural from the mom. She also cleaned the patient

up, repositioned her for comfort, and encouraged skin to skin with the newborn.

b. Identify 2 appropriate nursing diagnoses that were utilized

1. Risk for fluid volume deficit r/t blood loss from vaginal birth.

2. Acute pain r/t the intensified contractile pattern, mechanical pressure of presenting part,

& tissue dilation/stretching of vaginal birth as evidenced by facial mask of pain,

verbalizations, and narrowed focus.

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c. Include Weekly OB Clinical Assessment Form & Medication Sheets

(below)

2. Describe the most significant event or learning experience of the day that you either observed or

participated.

The most significant event of the day was the actual vaginal birth. Observing the vaginal birth

reinforced the information we learned in class, which will be useful when studying. This was the

perfect first birth to observe because it went great with no complications, which will allow me to

identify abnormalities in future births that I observe. The mom controlled her pushes well and

tolerated the pain well.

3. Identify course and clinical objectives and describe how you met those objectives for the day.

See course packet for specific community site objectives.

One of the clinical objectives that I feel I met was “Integrate relevant concepts & theories of

nursing & other disciplines into a plan of care that maintains & promotes the health and well-

being of developing families and women.” Because I was able to observe a vaginal birth

immediately after our exam on labor and birth, I was able to correlate the theoretical concepts

discussed in class to the birth observed in the clinical setting.

4. Evaluate your day’s clinical experience

Overall, I really enjoyed this clinical experience. I feel that I gained a lot of knowledge about

nursing interventions and assessments for a vaginal birth. This experience will benefit me in

class as well because it tied together a lot of the material that has been covered thus far.
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5. Compare vaginal delivery to cesarean delivery

After observing both vaginal and cesarean births, I feel that the vaginal delivery was safer and

has less of a risk of complications than cesarean delivery. Because cesarean delivery is a surgery,

there is more of a risk for infection and postpartum hemorrhage. The mother delivering vaginally

seemed like she was in more pain during the actual birth, but the mother having a c-section

seemed to be in no pain due to the spinal. After the surgery, however, the c-section mom was in a

lot of pain and the vaginal mom was in less pain. Furthermore, the newborn was able to bond

with mom and do skin to skin immediately after being assessed; with the cesarean delivery, the

mother had to be in the recovery room for two hours after the birth, which prevents mom and

baby from bonding during the “golden hour.” Overall, I feel that vaginal births have more

benefits and less complications than cesarean births and should be encouraged to mothers unless

contraindicated.

Labor and Delivery Clinical Assessment Form

Name: Makaela Giannini Date of Clinical: 2/9/2021

Labor & Delivery Experience:

Delivery:

Date 2/23/2021 Time 11:30

Anesthesia: Local / Epidural / Spinal / General

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Boy / Girl Birth Wt. 9 lb 6 oz APGAR 9 / 9