Monday, March 2, 2020
Norman Regional Health System’s Obstetrical Emergency Department (OBED) elevates the level of care for pregnant women 16 weeks gestation or above with a board-certified OB hospitalist on site 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The OB hospitalist will work closely with a patient’s primary physician and the nursing staff to assess her condition, discuss her care options and provide appropriate treatment.
The OBED also has two post-birth initiatives to treat women up to six weeks postpartum.
The first initiative focuses on the prompt treatment of post-birth warning signs. Knowing the post-birth warning signs is important and can mean the difference of life or death for postpartum women.
There are multiple post-birth warning signs. Some require calling 911 while some may just require a call to your healthcare provider.
Call 911 if you’re experiencing:
- Chest pain
- Obstructed breathing or shortness of breath
- Seizures
- Thoughts of hurting yourself or your baby
Call your healthcare provider if:
- You’re bleeding, soaking through one pad/hour, or blood clots the size of an egg or bigger
- Have an incision that is not healing
- Have a red or swollen leg that is painful or warm to the touch
- Have a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher
- Have a headache that does not get better after taking medicine, or a bad headache with vision changes
If you cannot reach your healthcare provider, go to urgent care, the emergency department, or call 911.
When calling, be specific. Tell the 911 dispatcher or your healthcare provider “I had a baby on [this date] and I am having [these specific warning signs].”
“These are symptoms specific to women who have recently given birth and require prompt and appropriate treatment by experts in perinatal care,” said Annette Troxell, MS, RNC-OB, nurse manager for Norman Regional’s labor and delivery unit and the OBED.
The second initiative is the Blue Band Program, where labor and delivery patients who are diagnosed during their hospital stay with preeclampsia, gestational hypertension or chronic hypertension are given a blue wristband (pictured above) they are instructed to wear up to six weeks postpartum.
The labor and delivery staff has worked closely with the emergency department to ensure all staff are familiar with these initiatives and any patients presenting with post-birth warning signs symptoms or who are wearing a blue band are fast-tracked to the OBED.
“The OBED’s main benefit is patients being seen by a board-certified OB/GYN physician which helps with No. 1 patient safety and No. 2 patient satisfaction. These initiatives are just two of the different ways we’re trying to prevent maternal deaths,” said Becky Graham, DO, site director of the OBED.
Norman Regional’s OBED is located inside the Norman Regional HealthPlex off Tecumseh Road and Interstate 35 in the Women’s and Children’s pavilion. All patients in need of care at the OBED should use the Emergency Entrance located on the east side of the Norman Regional HealthPlex.
Please note that insurance carriers will process any visits to the OBED as an emergency room visit, subject to any co-pays, co-insurance or other applicable fees under a patient’s policy.
Click here to learn more about the OBED.