One baby in Nursery A and one in Nursery B. I get to guess whose parents will show first and which will need more of my attention, since my bilocation skills are a little rusty. 8 pm and every nurse in the unit had at least 2 babies due.
I was nearly finished with baby B (I'd elected to start with her, so I could spend more timewith family A) when the nurse practitioner appeared to inform me that the parents of baby A had arrived "with attitude" not improved by some bad news she'd had to share with them. Not terrible news, just one more thing they didn't want to hear.
Me: "Thanks, I'll be with them in just a minute. I just need to ....."
NP: "I can do that. What else do you need me to do so you can go take care of that mom in Nursery A?"
No, not wishful thinking. The nurse practitioner did everything I asked AND gave the medication I'd forgotten to mention, giving me the time I needed to soothe the mom who was about to have to go home weeks before her baby would be ready to join her. She could have stayed and talked to the mom until I got there, but she knew that what the mother needed was to hold her baby -- and that I needed to assess him before he came out of the isolette.
One of the things I like best about the nurse practitioners who work with us is that they have all walked in my shoes and they understand what they can do to make life easier for the nurses and for the families. That and they're willing to actually put out the effort when they have the time.
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