From conception to birth, pregnancy can be an exciting, terrifying, and stressful time for the mother and family. During pregnancy, there are many decisions that the family has to make regarding their new family member that depend on the circumstances of the pregnancy. Among these decisions, is the choice of how to deliver: vaginal or cesarean? Within the world of vaginal delivery, then comes the controversial request that some patients choose to make known as the elective induction. According to the American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG), induction of labor can be defined as “. . . the use of pharmacologic and/or mechanical methods to initiate uterine contractions before spontaneous labor occurs in order to affect vaginal
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A woman may choose to be induced for several reasons including convenience, desire to deliver due to discomfort of pregnancy, religious beliefs, and pressure from family members or unreliable media sources. However, according to ACOG, “The benefits of labor induction must be weighed against the potential maternal and fetal risks associated with this procedure” (2014, p.1) of which unfortunately, there are many. On the maternal side, induction poses a multitude of risks such as increasing rates of postpartum hemorrhage and the need for cesarean section. By increasing the risk of postpartum hemorrhage, the mother then becomes at further risk for needing a hysterectomy, blood transfusion, longer hospital stay costing the family exorbitant amounts of money, problematic future pregnancies, and even death related to hypovolemic shock. The need for a cesarean birth can also jeopardize the mother’s health by causing an increased risk of infection, risk of developing a deep vein thrombosis, and possible chronic pain from surgical incisions. The request for elective induction also poses many risks to the fetus, some of which are life threatening. These risks include greater risk for …show more content…
Induction of labor is becoming increasingly popular through hospitals all throughout the country including Frederick Memorial Hospital (FMH) in Frederick, Maryland. Complications regarding elective induction of labor at FMH have been on the rise, causing nurses to brainstorm ways to minimize the life threatening risks. Among the top complications related to elective induction at FMH are fetal shoulder dystocia related to precipitous labor, postpartum hemorrhage, emergency caesarian deliveries, and higher rate of fetal admissions to the NICU. Of these problems listed, an emergency cesarean section and a postpartum hemorrhage were complications that I witnessed during my four day period of data collection at FMH. Due to the rising rate of elective inductions at FMH, and their contribution to complications, a quality improvement project was conducted. Through this project, contributing factors related to the problem were identified and patient data supporting the problem was collected leading to an intervention, which was set in place in order to attempt to minimize the number of elective inductions at FMH, and in turn, minimize the number of induction related complications. Several causes were identified to be contributing to
A woman may choose to be induced for several reasons including convenience, desire to deliver due to discomfort of pregnancy, religious beliefs, and pressure from family members or unreliable media sources. However, according to ACOG, “The benefits of labor induction must be weighed against the potential maternal and fetal risks associated with this procedure” (2014, p.1) of which unfortunately, there are many. On the maternal side, induction poses a multitude of risks such as increasing rates of postpartum hemorrhage and the need for cesarean section. By increasing the risk of postpartum hemorrhage, the mother then becomes at further risk for needing a hysterectomy, blood transfusion, longer hospital stay costing the family exorbitant amounts of money, problematic future pregnancies, and even death related to hypovolemic shock. The need for a cesarean birth can also jeopardize the mother’s health by causing an increased risk of infection, risk of developing a deep vein thrombosis, and possible chronic pain from surgical incisions. The request for elective induction also poses many risks to the fetus, some of which are life threatening. These risks include greater risk for …show more content…
Induction of labor is becoming increasingly popular through hospitals all throughout the country including Frederick Memorial Hospital (FMH) in Frederick, Maryland. Complications regarding elective induction of labor at FMH have been on the rise, causing nurses to brainstorm ways to minimize the life threatening risks. Among the top complications related to elective induction at FMH are fetal shoulder dystocia related to precipitous labor, postpartum hemorrhage, emergency caesarian deliveries, and higher rate of fetal admissions to the NICU. Of these problems listed, an emergency cesarean section and a postpartum hemorrhage were complications that I witnessed during my four day period of data collection at FMH. Due to the rising rate of elective inductions at FMH, and their contribution to complications, a quality improvement project was conducted. Through this project, contributing factors related to the problem were identified and patient data supporting the problem was collected leading to an intervention, which was set in place in order to attempt to minimize the number of elective inductions at FMH, and in turn, minimize the number of induction related complications. Several causes were identified to be contributing to