Morton Plant Hospital Offers Services of Family Admission Nurse to Expectant Families

To help ease some of these concerns and improve the overall birthing experience, Morton Plant Hospital offers all expectant families the services of a Family Admission Nurse. The nurse, Kaitlin Brennan, meets with families prior to delivery to answer questions, complete paperwork, review the birth plan and provide education.

As a labor and delivery nurse for nine years, she recognizes that child birth is unique for each person. “Everyone has different concerns. Part of my job is to listen and provide the specific information that person needs.” Brennan said.

“I also try to set a realistic expectation for the patient,” she said. “I have met with people from various departments including nursing, anesthesiology and neonatal to find out what they think an expectant mother should know. Then I share those things with her at our meeting.”

Morton Plant Hospital began this service after leadership attended a presentation on discharge and admission nurses at an Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) conference. After seeing the success of the discharge nurse program, which had been operating about a year, the Family Admission Nurse was piloted with a single doctor group in December 2014.

To reach more patients, Brennan plans to meet with all doctor groups this month to have patients initiate the call to schedule their appointment. This will allow the patient to call a staffed-line at her convenience and eliminate phone tag.

In the year since Morton Plant Hospital began offering the services of a Family Admission Nurse, it has proven to be a win for families as well as the hospital. The simple task of completing the paperwork in advance saves labor and delivery nurses about an hour – time that can be spent focusing solely on patient needs.

In addition to the Family Admission Nurse, Morton Plant Hospital continues to offer numerous classes each month for expectant parents. The classes cover a variety of topics including prenatal yoga, labor and birthing positions, childbirth preparation and newborn care. To view the list, go to www.BayCareEvents.org and select maternity under category and Clearwater under cities.

About Morton Plant Hospital
Since 1916, Morton Plant Hospital has been committed to improving the health of all we serve through community-owned health care services that set the standard for high-quality, compassionate care. Our 687-bed hospital is proud to offer nationally recognized care delivered in more than 50 specialty areas. Morton Plant Hospital offers innovative, accessible, and quality services to provide our community with a lifetime of compassionate, convenient care. Check out information on Morton Plant’s 100th Anniversary at www.MortonPlant100.org. For more information, call (727) 953-6877, or visit us on Facebook or at 300 Pinellas St., Clearwater, Fla. 

About BayCare Health System
BayCare is a leading not-for-profit health care system that connects individuals and families to a wide range of services at 14 hospitals and hundreds of other convenient locations throughout the Tampa Bay and central Florida regions. Inpatient and outpatient services include acute care, primary care, imaging, laboratory, behavioral health, home care, and wellness. Our mission is to improve the health of all we serve through community-owned, health care services that set the standard for high-quality, compassionate care. For more information, visit BayCare on the Web at www.BayCare.org.