I delivered my daughter on Wednesday. This was my second delivery at Henry Mayo. Let me begin by saying that my labor and delivery nurse for my first delivery, K, was absolutely amazing. I learned shortly before my first delivery that I would not be receiving an epidural due to a low platelet count and K's care and coaching through my delivery were phenomenal.
As a result, I had high expectations for the care I would receive going into my second delivery. My labor and delivery nurse this time around, Tamara, did not disappoint.
With COVID-19, I was not sure what to expect and as you may imagine, I was apprehensive about giving birth in a hospital during the pandemic. Tamara eased my concerns. She was friendly, kind, personable, and caring. Other than the masks we were wearing, you would have never known I was having a baby during a pandemic. Tamara made both me and my husband laugh and took my mind off the pain and all that was going on. In addition, Tamara was training another nurse during my care and therefore, I was able to see how knowledgeable she was, which gave me a sense of reassurance during my labor.
For this delivery, my platelet count was just above the minimum requirements, so I was able to receive an epidural. While I wanted to have the epidural this time, I was nervous about the procedure and about getting the epidural in general. Tamara literally held me, talked me through each contraction, and coached me through the procedure. While this may be standard care for a labor and delivery nurse, with the risks associated with COVID-19, I found this to be exceptional care.
About an hour after my epidural, Tamara went on her lunch break and another nurse came into the room. We were all chatting when suddenly my heart started racing, my throat became severely dry to the point I could not swallow, and I sat up abruptly. The nurse covering for Tamara stayed with me, turned off the epidural, and called the anesthesiologist.
An anesthesiologist came to my room and explained that perhaps I was having a reaction to the epidural. He turned the epidural back on at a low level. When I told him I felt like my mouth was getting very dry again and that I was having trouble swallowing, he said perhaps it was "in my head" as this wasn't a usual reaction.
When he left, I asked the nurse to turn the epidural off again. I was afraid I would be well into my labor and panicking that I couldn't breathe or swallow. Later, another anesthesiologist came to my room (the one that had administered the epidural). He said that he felt the epidural had traveled up to my shoulders and upper chest; thus, causing what I was experiencing. That said, I never felt a numbing sensation in my shoulders or upper chest.
When Tamara returned from her lunch break, she asked me what happened. I explained to her that my heart suddenly started racing and my mouth went extremely dry, making it hard to swallow. She told me that I had Fentanyl in my epidural and that what I was experiencing was not anything they had seen before. I explained that I had Fentanyl on a previous occasion with no reaction. At this time, Tamara told me that she felt I had a panic attack. She encouraged me to try turning on the epidural again, starting with a low dose and moving it up slowly, and she asked my husband to play some calming music. She really wanted to make my delivery experience more enjoyable than my first, where I was unable to receive the epidural. Tamara was the only care provider that realized what was actually going on with me. A panic attack made perfect sense, especially since I was so nervous about getting the epidural.
At that time, since I was feeling nauseous, Tamara decided to check and see how my labor had progressed. Turns out, I was ready to deliver my baby, so I ended up not having my epidural turned back on. That said, should I have another child, I now feel much more comfortable about receiving an epidural since I do not believe I had an adverse reaction.
During the delivery process, my daughter's heart rate dropped to 50 bpm. Within seconds Tamara had taken off my protective mask, put an oxygen mask on me, and was leaning on my bed finding my baby's heart rate again. She talked me through this and told me to breathe for my baby. A few minutes later our healthy baby girl arrived.
I felt so fortunate to be in Tamara's experienced and caring hands during my labor and delivery. I believe Tamara demonstrates the WE CARE principles as well as a high level of clinical expertise and compassion to her patients.

Note: This is Tamara's 2nd DAISY Award!