Pain Management for the Obstetric Patient

Pain management in obstetric patients
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Introduction
Obstetric patients denote the women in the process of pregnancy, birth and recovery. These stages involve discomfort and pain which require management in order to give comfort to the mothers. It is the duty of the health workers including the registered nurses to offer management of the pain and the discomfort that is associated with the obstetric patients. The right intervention, when given at the right time can help to reduce the discomforts and pain that is experienced by the ante partum, intra partum and the postpartum patients. This paper analyses the measures taken to manage the discomfort and pain that is experienced by obstetric patients whether the pregnancy has had complications or not.
Pain in obstetric patients
Obstetric patients are bound to experience discomfort and pain even with the most uncomplicated pregnancy, birth and recovery. The pain during pregnancy, birth and recovery is deemed natural. However measures are taken to manage the pain so as to prevent too much suffering of the mothers. There are different sources of pain at each stage of the obstetric patients. During ante partum, the sources of pain are from the dilation and stretching of the cervix. Garthus, Knoph, Nielsen & Eberhard (2014) state that; during the ante partum stage, the cervix dilates and stretches in preparation for the passage of the baby.
Although the body starts to prepare for the expulsion of the baby from an earlier time which is estimated to be three months; on the onset of labor there is thorough dilation of the cervix which leads to excruciating pain. These activities result to immense pain that increases with each next contraction. Another source of pain at this stage is the contraction of the uterus. During labor, the uterus contracts as a way of pushing out the baby. The contractions are gradual such that it takes time for the uterus to release the baby. The contractions in the uterus result to immense pain which call for management in order for the mothers to bear.
During intra partum, pain comes from the pressure in the vagina and the perineum. The pain is usually described as burning and tearing. During the time of fetal descent and expulsion, the vagina and the perineum experience pressure and distention. This causes a burning sensation which is very painful. Another source of pain at this stage is the laceration of the soft tissues. Garthus, Knoph, Nielsen & Eberhard (2014) observe that; during the expulsion of the baby, the soft tissues in the vagina, cervix and perineum get lacerated from the pressure exerted by the baby.
During post partum, there is also experience of pain emanating from pressure and pulling of uterine structures. These pull back in a bid to return to the normal shape. Pain from the distention and stretching of the vagina experienced during intra partum, continue to exert pain during post partum.
Pain management measures
Pain management measures in the obstetric patients can be categorized into two. There are the pharmacologic and the non pharmacologic measures. Whitburn (2013) clarifies that; Pharmacologic measures involve administration of medicine in order to manage the pain. An example is the administration of anesthetics or sedatives. These are meant to relief the pain by sedating the muscles. They are advantageous in the sense that, they make child birth bearable because the mother will not experience the excruciating pain. However, they have disadvantages in the sense that they are associated with depression of the fetus. They can also lead to unsteady ambulation of the obstetric patient.
The non pharmacologic pain management measures denote the strategies of pain management in obstetric patients that do not involve administration of drugs. An example is the frequent change of position by the patient. This helps to avoid overstretching one side of the body. The positions include, semi sitting, squatting and kneeling. Again, the frequent changing of position helps to distract the concentration of the mother to the pain. Breathing methods is also another non pharmacological pain management strategy in obstetric patients. The obstetric patients, during preparation for child birth classes, are taught the breathing patterns which are helpful in management of the labor pain. Different breathing patterns are applied at different stages of the labor.
Kokki, Franco, Raatikainen et al (2012) disclose that; the non pharmacological methods of managing pain in intra partum are beneficial because, since they are natural, they do not come with side effects that are associated with the pharmacological strategies. They are also cost effective because they do not require spending any money to achieve them. However, they have risks in the sense that, they do not offer deep relief of the pain. The obstetric patient still experience the pain only that it is a bit bearable.
It is very crucial for the obstetric patient to make their own decisions to be effected during the intra partum. In order for them to make informed decisions, it is crucial for them to receive some education during the ante partum period. In order to come up with a teaching plan that is suitable for the individual mother, it is crucial to consider the variables that are unique to the pregnant mother. The variables include; cultural back ground, individual pain tolerance as well as language barrier. It is crucial to consider the variables in the individual mothers as one comes up with the birth plan classes. This is because, each individual obstetric patients is unique and therefore have unique needs.
According to Steel, Adams, Sibbritt et al (2014) Cultural back ground of the pregnant woman is a crucial variable to consider because; different cultures have different implications when it comes to matters relating to child birth. Some cultures may not allow the participation of the partner in the process of birth due to the taboos associated with men going near birth places. This would affect selection f the option of having a partner to massage her, as a method of pain management if the spouse is the only available person who could accompany the mother to the birth place.
Individual pain tolerance is also another crucial variable to consider in developing the teaching plan f...