Male(s) in the NICU?

jessoutside · Jul 25, 2016

Hi there! We have several males in our mostly female NICU (and we seem to add one or two every year!). They are part of our family! No stigma. They are solid nurses who do a fantastic job taking care of patients. They DO typically ask a female nurse to help with teaching a mom to breastfeed, or position with kangaroo care, but that seems to be their personal preference and what they are comfortable with. If you want to be in the NICU then go for it! One of our male NICU nurses is going on to be an NNP! :-)

**NICU Guy, BSN, RN** · Jul 26, 2016

There is no stigma. I am fully capable of taking care of the babies as well as my female co-workers. I am 1 of 2 male nurses out of a 300 RN unit. Parents don't treat me any different than my female co-workers.

We have full time Lactation Consultants so any breastfeeding issues are referred to the Lactation Consultants. Their job is to teach the moms about breastfeeding. Both me and my female coworkers refer them to the Lactation Consultants. They have fr more training than we do.

I have helped many moms Kangaroo Care their preemie and they didn't seem to have an issue.

Our NICU chaplain calls me an "anomaly" in the NICU. I think the dads enjoy seeing another male caring for their baby. It encourages them to be willing to hold their baby without "breaking" them. I love my job and will stay in NICU until retirement.

We need more males in NICU, don't give up your dream.

BittyBabyGrower, MSN, RN · Jul 27, 2016

We are up to 7 guys and love it!!! They relate to the dads so well and we have a group that meets

just for dads run by our guys! This is great because we work in

a large inner city hospital and has really helped some of our

dads see their potential of becoming an important role player in bringing up their baby!

Our guys can help with breastfeeding and kangaroo

care with the best of us!

So go for it!!!

Missie Hannie · Jul 28, 2016

There are a small handful of male nurses on our unit, and they are all amazing! I agree with what several others here have said, that the male nurses are better able to relate to the dads, and are able to be good role models. The male nurses on our unit do like to be warned if a mom is breastfeeding or doing kangaroo care behind a closed door, so that they don't bust in on them unexpectedly; they are very sensitive to the moms' modesty concerns, and will offer to have one of their female colleagues assist with some care if the mom prefers. As a female NICU nurse, I appreciate the care and attention to detail that these guys show to these little babies!

In short, yes, you should pursue your dream of becoming a NICU nurse!

stm94 · Jul 28, 2016

Thank you everybody! :)

KKEGS, MSN, RN · Aug 1, 2016

We have 5 male RNs in our 125 RN NICU . Sometimes we have families request no male nurses but it really doesn't happen that often. Our male nurses are some of our best! If you have a passion for it then go for it! We need more guys in NICU!