A patient is admitted to the postpartum unit 2 hours after a vaginal delivery. Three hours after admission, the nurse ambulates the patient to the bathroom, and the patient states there is a sudden gush of bleeding from the vagina. The nurse understands the increase in the amount of bleeding is due to:
a) Uterine atony
b) Retained placental fragments
c) Cervical laceration
d) Physiological postpartum bleeding