NICU jobs in MN-MSP area?

KKEGS, MSN, RN · May 31, 2017

Hey there! I live in the Minneapolis/St Paul area AND I worked at a Level III NICU! :) I worked at Children's Minnesota on the St Paul campus for nearly 3 years. I did a 2 year new grad training program and then stayed on for nearly another year before leaving to work full time as a school nurse. Not because I didn't like NICU but because the school nurse schedule was much better for me and my family. However, I still pick up NICU shifts through a staffing agency. Which, by the way, is a great way to try on the different NICUs for size before you commit! And the pay is good too.

Children's Minnesota NICU nurses and the NNPs and neonatologists are some of the most supportive people I've ever worked with. They really have each other's backs! I learned a lot from them and LOVE being able to pick up shifts on my old unit. There were some problems with morale (and sometimes there still is a lot of griping about management and changes being required from those up above but I think that's true of any job) and a bunch of people quit last year (for various reasons) so staffing was tough for awhile. However, a lot of new people have been hired over the last year so I think staffing is getting better.

I've also picked up a few shifts on the Children's - Minneapolis campus and it was fine. Obviously I don't know it as well as I know St Paul but the other nurses were always welcoming and asked if I needed help or had questions which is always nice to hear when you are a traveling nurse. Each campus kind of specializes in certain things so, for example, only Minneapolis does ECMO and any baby we had in St Paul with cardiac issues beyond a PDA or VSD was sent to Minneapolis. St Paul's specialty is neuro so we get most of the babies who need to be body cooled or are on the Brainz or video EEGs.

I've heard great things about the NICU at the Fairview University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital although I've never worked there. I have a friend who quit Children's and took a NICU job at Fairview and loves it. She says the other nurses are very friendly and it is a very busy NICU. They are a mixture of large open bay, smaller open bay and private rooms. Children's is all private.

I've picked up at Maple Grove Hospital's NICU (great western suburb!) as well and it was okay. Very different than Children's (different equipment and supplies and their Level III is open bay style versus private rooms like at Children's) but, again, the nurses were helpful if I had questions but they didn't go out of their way to welcome me or offer help like at Children's. They take babies down to 28 weeks but last time I was there they told me they are in the process of preparing to drop that down to 24 weeks.

I believe those are the 3 main Level III NICUs in the Twin Cities area.

I hope that helps!

kdkout, BSN, RN · May 31, 2017

Thanks! It especially helps to explain the differences between campuses. Are they all 12s or 8 hr shifts? I prefer 12s.

KKEGS, MSN, RN · Jun 1, 2017

Mostly 12s. I think 8s are pretty rare these days.

kdkout, BSN, RN · Jun 1, 2017

Thanks!