Careers in Health Care:
NICU Spotlight
Registered nurses are found in a wide variety of health care areas. If you are a registered nurse or pursuing a degree in nursing, numerous options are open to you, including pediatrics, geriatrics and women’s health. Check out a helpful list of specialties at allnurses.com.
Nursing in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) presents special challenges and opportunities as well as heartwarming rewards. While the majority of newborn infants are born healthy, more intense monitoring and care are sometimes necessary. A NICU features highly sophisticated equipment specially designed to care for critically-ill newborns in an environment that fosters healthy development.
In this post, we focus on the NICU nurses here at Howard County General Hospital. We’ve asked a small sampling of them to share their experiences to give you an inside look into caring for our youngest patients.
| Q1. | What are your main duties as part of the NICU team? |
Answer: Care of all levels of NICU infants; implementation of the care plan; primary nursing. Answer: Assessment and care of newborn infants with illness from birth until discharge. Part of a multidisciplinary team including MDs, NNPs (Neonatal Nurse Practitioners), RTs (Respiratory Therapists), Social Work, Case Management and OT (Occupational Therapists), PT (Physical Therapists) and Speech therapists. |
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| Q2. | What made you choose neonatal medicine? |
Answer: I had always wanted to work in the pediatric population, but at the time when I was looking for a job in San Diego, there were no openings in Pediatrics. Therefore, I accepted a NICU position and can't imagine doing any other type of nursing! Answer: Pediatric ICU was too sad. I enjoyed the differences in the neonate and the fact that some babies are more critically ill and challenging, but most survive our care. Their later outcomes are still of concern. I enjoy working with new parents. |
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| Q3. | Do you find yourself taking some of the stress and emotions home with you? |
Answer: At times you carry things home with you, but the support of my family and my very close co-workers have always gotten me through. Answer: Not unless we have a really stressful day e.g. infant death, stillborn, fetal demise or if I feel that the team is working against each other. Self care including down time and a glass of wine! Answer: I do not believe I take the stress home. I do ride home in silence in order to remove the sound of monitors and telephones that I constantly hear in the unit. Answer: No. I have learned to leave work at work. |
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| Q4. | When people NOT employed in the health care industry find out what you do for a living, what are some of the most common questions you are asked and how do you reply? |
Answer: The question I hear the most is, "How can you care for those little babies?" I usually joke, "I am bigger than they are, I can take them." But it is fascinating to work with a brand new life, and to teach the parents what is going on with their babies. Answer: "How can you handle such small patients? Don't you cry when they get very sick?" My answer is always, "Babies are always a joy to take care of. The sense of fulfillment is out of this world." |
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| Q5. | Without revealing any patient details, please share a POSITIVE experience you've had while working in the NICU. |
Answer: At a NICU Reunion, a parent came up to me and my daughter and told my daughter what an angel I was and what wonderful care I took of her daughter. When she left at night she was always reassured that her daughter was well cared for when I was there! Answer: Our smallest and sickest babies come back a year or several years later with a big smile and a big hug! That is reward enough!!!! Parents don't forget the NICU nurse who took care of their child. Answer: Seeing babies return for a visit or at a reunion. The last time I saw the baby, it may have been just 5 pounds. Now the baby is not a baby, but a laughing, running child! |
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| Q6. | Please share any especially challenging experiences you've had while working in the NICU. |
Answer: It's always challenging caring for the most critically ill of NICU infants. The worst in recent memory is a full term infant who passed away at birth. Any deaths in the NICU are difficult, but the most challenging for me have always been unexpected and full term deaths. Answer: Letting the parents understand the gravity of their child's condition and the quality of life they will be facing in the future. |
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| Q7. | What advice would you give to someone considering a career in neonatal medicine? |
Answer: Love babies and parents. Be ready for sick and well care. Be gentle and enjoy teaching. Understand that you don't usually learn nursing care of the neonate in an undergrad program. Be a critical thinker and hone your assessment skills to pick up on the subtle clues in this population. Answer: Start your NICU career in a large teaching hospital for at least one year to get daily experience with the variety of cases that NICUs handle. Answer: My advice would be to remember that you are not just caring for the baby. There is a family that comes with the baby. Sometimes you spend just as much time caring for the parents as for the baby. You must have a love for children, be willing to learn something new everyday, and not impose your personal feelings onto others. |
