16 nurses from same intensive care unit pregnant at same time
The 16 nurses who work at the intensive care unit (ICU) of Banner Desert Medical Centre in Mesa, Arizona, only discovered how many of them were simultaneously expecting children when they all happened to join a Facebook group chat for pregnant workers at the hospital.
Nurse Ashley Atkins who spoke to newsmen, said the pregnancy disclosure left staff wondering “what’s in the water”, and it has also brought the nurses together.
This isn’t an easy job to have when you’re pregnant and not feeling well all the time, so it’s nice to share stories and have that support, and then you find out how supportive your co-workers are of you, and your management team, so it’s been a good experience, she said.
While some think the absence of the nurses after they give birth may cause complications for the ICU even though the hospital is well-prepared for the eventuality, it was gathered that most of the nurses are due to give birth at some point between October and January.
We’ve been planning this for months, so we feel very confident that we’re going to have plenty of ICU nurses to take care of patients, explained Heather Francis, nursing director at the hospital.
It was further gathered that there are certain precautions that nurses have now taken in order to look after the health of their babies, as some of them will continue working as long as they can throughout their pregnancies.
Certain infections, and then also chemotherapy drugs, can be very toxic to the foetus, said Ms Francis.
A nurse revealed that one patient had been quite bewildered, asking her: “Are you all pregnant?” while staying in the hospital.
The Independent reported that a number of people have been expressing their astonishment over the situation on social media, with one person writing: “The new season of Grey’s Anatomy is crazy.”
Posts
