!!!NICU nurses: help for a future nurse

[princessmadz]

Hi everyone! I am currently in high school and my one true passion in life is to become a NICU nurse (eventually an NNP). I know what some of you may think.

"you're just a teenager who loves babies. you're too young to know what you really want to do."

If you're here to give me that response, don't bother wasting your time. I've gotten that response. Plenty of times. The response that I am looking for is advice.

Is there anything I can do to prepare myself for nursing school/NICU nursing?

What is working in a NICU like?

Tips on being a good NICU nurse/getting a NICU nursing job?

The best nursing schools?

Just any information like that would be greatly appreciated.

Also just a disclaimer: All I do is research about becoming a NICU nurse and working in that environment. I do not want to be a NICU nurse because I "love babies". I know that the job can be mentally and emotionally draining, but I also know that it can be very rewarding and satisfying. I'm not sure exactly what drew me to NICU nursing in the first place, but I am very passionate about it. I am driven toward that career, and I am determined to get there.

Thanks for reading and please respond!

[roser13, ASN, RN]

All the information you could hope for:

NICU Nursing / Neonatal

[Leader25, ASN, BSN, RN]

I am still waiting for the"rewarding and satisfying" part of nursing,all the new government changes with less qualified ,less devoted,less masochistic nurses entering the field it is a crap shoot.Docotrs get away with every friggen mistake,it is hushed and covered up, urses stab each other on the back especially from certain non confrontational cultural groups, they act quiet ,avert their eyes,posture as meek ,and then complain about ALL their co-workers,from work,to dinner breaks, as if they are superior nurses.They will never tackle issues as a united front,preferring to whisper on the sidelines.If you want to face all this find a place to work tha does not have their own nursing school,has a strong union and get to work.

[princessmadz]

Thank you! I've been reading a lot of these, it's all very helpful!

[babyNP., APRN]

Hey, it's okay to go into NICU because you love babies. That's what I did and I still love babies 6 years later...welcome to allnurses :)

[princessmadz]

Hi babyNP.. I looked on your profile and noticed you're an NP, which is what I plan to eventually become. Do you have any helpful tips or stories from working in the NICU? What is your job like on a daily basis? Thanks!

[babyNP., APRN]

Hi babyNP.. I looked on your profile and noticed you're an NP, which is what I plan to eventually become. Do you have any helpful tips or stories from working in the NICU? What is your job like on a daily basis? Thanks!

I posted in your other thread in the NP forum. Good luck!

[shermrn]

I think it's great you have a goal, stick with it. At your age you could start on the path to becoming an expert in human anatomy and physiology. If you are able to master these subjects, most everything else should make sense and come pretty easily to you, It's also basic science in which the information is not likely to change between now and the time you are in nursing school, it's also something you can begin to learn now on your own time. Also train yourself to be good at observing the tiniest details, like ones skin color, breathing pattern, etc. It will be helpful of course to be comfortable talking with people who are going through a difficult time in their lives, become a good listener, get comfortable knowing what to say and when to say it, learn when it's best to say nothing and just listen. A second or third language would also come in handy, whatever you are most likely to run into in your neck of the woods. I hope this helps. Good luck with everything.