Labor and Delivery nursing involves assisting families throughout the birth process, working on a team with physicians, midwives and other professionals.L&D nurses care for women during both normal and problematic pregnancies, providing information, guidance and hands-on clinical care.They are also important participants in the birth process itself and are key sources of information and support for the whole family during the period following birth.
The Labor and Delivery nurse works in a clinic, hospital or birth center setting, assisting the physician or midwife with all aspects of pregnancy and childbirth.
Nursing duties during the birth itself include monitoring fetal heartbeat and the length and strength of contractions, as well as administering medication,
coaching the mother and assisting with any complications that arise. Following the birth, they perform tests on the newborn and provide guidance to the mother on all aspects of recovery and infant care.
The duties of an L&D nurse may include seeing expectant mothers in their prenatal visits, providing family support and teaching childbirth preparation classes.
To see an expectant mother through the journey of childbirth, daily L&D duties include
- Monitoring patients with high-tech diagnostic equipment
- Entering patient data into digital medical records systems
- Spending one-on-one personal time with birthing women
- Working holistically with families and providing a warm point of contact
