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As a non-NICU nurse who has worked in the NICU (in a research role), I found it an odd, yet endearing thing, that the nurses always referred to the babies as "kiddos". It seemed universal in the NICUs in which I worked (three). Now I'm reading threads here and seeing nurses here also using that term (makes me smile).
Do all NICU nurses call their patients "kiddo"?
This whole thread made me smile. Just today (the day after stretch of 4 night shifts in a row) I was telling my own kids (11 & 13), whom I call my "beans", a reference to a favorite children's book we love by Rold Dahl where all people are called "human beans", how strange it is to come home and then also miss my primary "work kiddos". We laughed together at that!
I noticed the kiddos thing too and thought nobody else noticed it! I've heard it for -- well a really long time now. It extends to young children up to 2 years old I suppose. Kidlet is another, but less common than kiddo. It's always fun when a nurse invents a baby-specific name. I remember one "Squiggy". I had never heard of Squiggy at the time, but once I looked at Squiggy and the baby's hair I could see what she was talking about.
tinkerbell419
181 Posts
I have called some babies "little chicken" or "sweetiepie". I like the term "tiny humans" or "little people". Ahhh so cute, makes you feel warm and fuzzy.