"If you ask any woman about her childbirth experience, she can tell you details years later. They don't forget. It's an awesome, life-changing experience for a woman," said Patty Waller, director of the Birth Place at Rockdale Medical Center in Conyers.
Waller has worked in obstetrics for 30 years and has assisted in the births of more than 1,600 babies.
 Barry Williams/Special |
| AWARD WINNERS: Debbie Garriott (from left), Alicia Noel, Patty Waller, Dawn Mott, Penny Montgomery and Jennifer Van Berkum are on the staff of the Birth Place at Rockdale Medical Center in Conyers. |
"We're privileged to be part of such
a marvelous time in [a woman's] life," she said. "In what other job do you get the chance to make a lifelong impression?"
The Birth Place delivers between 135 and 180 babies a month, and Waller encourages her staff to treat each mother and baby like family members.
"We are called to help women and give them the tools to care for their babies. It's more than a job," said Waller, RN, MSN, CNM. "Nothing that happens here is commonplace to our patients. This is a special and unique time in their lives, and we want to make it so."
That attitude has been recognized and appreciated. In October, the Birth Place received a Johnson & Johnson Childbirth Nursing Award.
A patient who had an outstanding experience there nominated the Birth Place for the national award.
"For a new mom to take the time to recognize the care that she received from an entire staff is a very special honor," said Jill Clarke, hospital representative for Johnson & Johnson.
Johnson & Johnson will enter the Birth Place in a drawing for one of four $1,000 educational grants and two complimentary registrations to the 2008 Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses convention.
"We have a wonderful staff that believes in what they are doing, and this award shows that they are doing a lot of things right," Waller said.
Her job is to make sure that nurses have the tools they need to provide the best care.
"We work hard on staff ratios, so that nurses have the time to spend with their patients," she said. "They don't have to rush in and rush out of rooms but can give that one-on-one, human-to-human touch.
"We do a lot of teaching and listening at the bedside. When nurses can explain what they're doing and why, it makes all the difference in the world."
Rockdale Medical Center has a 16-week internship for nurses who want to work in obstetrics and labor and delivery. The Birth Place trains six nurses a year, and each intern is required to work for at least a year at Rockdale Medical.
"Nurses often say that they want to work labor and delivery, but no one will hire them because they lack experience. We pay them to learn how to use fetal monitors, assess a baby in utero [and] to give vaginal exams and care after a Caesarean section," Waller said. "We're very fortunate that the hospital sees the value of such training."
Waller is proud of her staff and especially of the fact that the award came from a nomination by a patient.
"Knowing that we're giving quality care to our community — that's the ultimate reward," she said.