The labor and delivery unit

Lisa in Labor: An At-Risk Labor and Birth Case Study. On October 1st of the current year, L.G., a 16-year-old Caucasian female who is a G4 P0030, presents at a local hospital in labor. She reports that her due date is “the beginning of September of this year.” Based on her last menstrual period, her EDD is October 15th.

Coming to the labor and delivery unit alone, she states that she does not have any family or support. Upon further questioning, she states that a friend “gave me a ride and dropped me off here.” L.G. reveals during her admission assessment that she has had no prenatal care during this pregnancy. She reports that she’s been in labor at home for the past few hours but that the contractions got “too hard for me to breathe through them” so she came to the hospital.

A vaginal exam reveals that her cervix is 6 cm dilated, 80% effaced and her fetus is at the -2 station. Her amniotic membranes are intact and bulging and the fetal presenting part cannot be palpated. Her vital signs reveal BP 170/92, P 80, R 16, and T 98.8 degrees Fahrenheit. After you (the nurse) perform Leopold’s maneuvers, you place the fetal heart toco on the left upper quadrant of the patient’s abdomen.