Neonatologists vs. Neonatal Nurses

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Hi, everyone. I am very interested in working in the neonatal units, but I am not sure which role I would be better suited for. What actual tasks do the neonatologists do compared to the neonatal nurses? Do the doctors have much interaction with the infants? Any other thoughts? Thanks!

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, educator.

I think you first need to decide what you want to be...a doc or a nurse. To get to neonatology it is a long haul for a doc. You have to do residency in peds and then you rotate thru NICU. What type of interaction? Docs don't sit and feed babies, they do procedures on them. As a nurse you have 1-4 patients, as a doc you have 40 or so.

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Specializes in NICU.

I agree...you need to decide whether you want to be an RN or MD...and what kind of patient interaction you want. Nurses do everything for the babies. We are at the baby's bedside literally 24/7 doing things such as diaper changes, feedings, vital signs, IV starts, meds, etc. Docs round of the babies a couple of times a day, write orders, and do procedures. NNP is another option...after being a neonatal nurse for a few years, you can become an NNP and function in a similar role to MDs.

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Thanks so much for your input. :)

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Hi, everyone. I am very interested in working in the neonatal units, but I am not sure which role I would be better suited for. What actual tasks do the neonatologists do compared to the neonatal nurses? Do the doctors have much interaction with the infants? Any other thoughts? Thanks!

IMHO, being a neonatal nurse would be much more fun than being a neonatologist. Of course, I'm neither...but I am a nurse extern in the NICU, so I see the roles of both. But if you have the desire to be a doctor, by all means be one. It's a very respectable career, and I'm sure it's very rewarding; it's just not for me.

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I think for me I would become a nurse first and see if you like it in the NICU. You can always become a NP in the NICU if you decide that you would like more procedures and autonomy.

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Specializes in Peds, 1yr.; NICU, 15 yrs..

I think, like those above you need to decide whether you want to a doc, or nurse, first.

Nursing is not a jump start for a medical degree. They are two wholly different mind sets. And, while an NNP has more autonomy, she/he still needs to have the mindset of a Nurse, to be a good one. Not a doctor.

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