Anjali Stenquist | It has since been updated to include information relevant to 2020. Your first step to becoming a neonatal nurse is to become a registered nurse by obtaining an Associate’s degree or Bachelor’s degree in Nursing and passing the NCLEX-RN exam. Fill out the form to receive information about: There are some errors in the form. She loves to write, teach and talk about the power of effective communication. For neonatal nurse practitioners, long shifts may be required. This piece of ad content was created by Rasmussen College to support its educational programs. “You are definitely considered a vital member of the team,” she says. Staffing levels may change depending on how many babies are in the NICU, so someone who works as a unit coordinator may need to make staffing decisions throughout the day, says Amanda O’Brien, unit coordinator/charge RN at the NICU of the University of Kansas Hospital. Some neonatal nurses report experiencing less physical stress compared to other nursing specialties, if for no other reason than the fact that the newborn babies and their families are a joyful population to work with. It takes a steady presence and good self-care habits to manage this fact. EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was originally published in 2015. However, not all neonatal nurses work in such intense settings. A common phrase in nursing is that there is no typical day, and that holds true in the NICU world as well. What Is the Career Outlook for NICU Nurses? Copyright © 2020 I have just been hired as a new graduate NICU nurse and I would like advice. This data does not represent starting salaries. Working as a NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) nurse or specializing in neonatal sounds appealing to you. Neonatal nurses also have the potential for career advancement within this specialization. They work closely with parents, neonatologists, and the rest of the NICU team to ensure the best treatment for the babies under their care. Neonatal nursing is not for the faint of heart, but for the right person—it’s a nursing career that puts you in contact with the patients you love most. Premature babies need routines, so routines dominate much of the hands-on work in the NICU. “You get a report from the off-going shift about what the baby has been doing in the last 24 hours; conditions can change rapidly. - V: 2020.24.0.26-820 -. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that registered nurses earned a 2018 median annual salary of $71,730.1. 2Burning-Glass.com (analysis of 27,152 neonatal nursing job postings, Oct. 01, 2018 - Sep. 30, 2019.) These advanced roles will allow you to support staff and direct educational programs that will improve patient care across the board. I have worked so hard to get where I am and thanks to the guidance of many, including information gathered from this amazing site, I have been hired in the specialty I have always wanted. The newborns they care for need round-the-clock attention, so nurses within this specialty are accustomed to working long shifts caring for anywhere from one to four infants at a time. And, like most other realms of health care, everything is documented. Thank you!You are now a Monster member—and you'll receive more content in your inbox soon. Like with physicians, sleep rooms may be provided. You know this fulfilling career could bring benefits to both your life and the lives of the patients with whom you’ll work every day. It takes a special person to work in NICU, Sirek says, and burnout is common; she is currently taking a break from working the NICU. You can probably guess that neonatal nurses must have a love for infants and their parents. These special-care nurseries came to be in the 1960s as technology became sophisticated enough to effectively treat premature babies. External links provided on rasmussen.edu are for reference only. Please correct the errors and submit again. A neonatal nurse working in a NICU could expect to start the day with responsibilities that more or less resemble what you’d see with other nursing specialties—dividing patient loads, relaying important patient information, reviewing notes and checking in with all patients and their families. Neonatal nurses “will help integrate parents into the critical care that you provide,” according to NANN. You may be able to find a neonatal nursing role straight out of school, but there’s also a good chance you’ll need to first build experience if you’re looking for a NICU position. This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience. Rasmussen College is not enrolling students in your state at this time. Another big difference from other types of nursing is the literal size of your patients—medications obviously need to be scaled down and require precision to ensure they’re safely administered. Information represents national, averaged data for the occupations listed and includes workers at all levels of education and experience. A NICU registered nurse will most likely be in a hospital environment where the stakes for the patient are likely to be higher. This provides neonatal nurses an opportunity to identify any signs of trouble, answer questions and educate families about they can expect next. And, like most other realms of health care, everything is documented. Sign up to get job alerts relevant to your skills and experience. Most NICUs mandate that nurses have no more than three babies to care for, Sirek says, while more critical babies may have their own dedicated nurse. Neonatal nurses care for infants who are born with issues such as premature birth, birth defects, infections or cardiac issues, according to the National Association of Neonatal Nurses (NANN). In her work in a NICU at a teaching hospital, O’Brien says the neonatologist does a lot of teaching during rounds each day and always asks for the nurses’ input and that they attend rounds. Perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of NICU nursing is managing the emotions that come with it—the highs of seeing an almost impossibly tiny premature baby overcome the odds will contrast with the lows of a family knowing their newborn might not be coming home. While all registered nursing jobs have a fair amount of common ground—administering medication, charting important information and answering questions all can be expected—there are a few nuances worth noting. The term “neonatal” refers to the first month of an infant’s life, but neonatal nurses may treat ailing newborns until they are discharged from the hospital, even if that takes several months. Like what you’ve read? I start college in July to become a RN and i wanna know the pros and cons before i chose a career. Though much of the work can be taxing emotionally, the NICU is also a unit full of love, support and positive outcomes. Rasmussen College is a regionally accredited college authorized to operate as a postsecondary educational institution by the Illinois Board of Higher Education. You then follow a very str… That said, a neonatal nurse working in a mother and baby center that doesn’t facilitate high risk pregnancies can probably expect to have a larger number of patients under their supervision each shift. If you’re ready to get started on your journey toward becoming a neonatal nurse, check out our article, “How to Become a Registered Nurse: Your 4-Step Guide.”. With higher-risk patients typically comes a smaller nurse to patient ratio—NICU patients just need additional care. Tori's Tips on NICU NURSE 101: See Blog Post Tori Meskin BSN RNC-NIC has been a clinician since 2012, works in acute care/inpatient NICU & Pediatric settings in southern California. More info. We see everything from full-term infants with an anoxic brain injuries, to neonates who may be withdrawing from maternal drug use, to the smallest of the smallest neonates. NICU nurses perform the following practices as part of their role: And this is the hard part. Pediatric ICU nursing care includes: Close monitoring of hemodynamics and respiratory status; Treatment of congenital diseases; Neonatal ICU Nurse. Additionally they’ll need to be excellent, empathetic communicators—the nature of this work means they may have to relay bad or seemingly scary news to new parents and help them process what it means. “The NICU is very task-oriented,” says Dawn Sirek, a nurse who works at Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. Please select another program of interest. “For some babies, it’s just a waiting game—you try to take care of them without touching them too much, as best you can, and let them sleep and grow.”, We should note that this is where the work pays off. Neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) provide round-the-clock care for babies who are born premature or with severe health problems. Lots of hospital jobs will put you through the emotional wringer, but maybe none so much as those in the NICU. Neonatal ICU or NICU nursing is for infants with life-threatening injuries or diseases. Mary Chan is a registered nurse who works in the NICU at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. 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