New Grad Question

[NICURNStepharelli]

Hi all. I am new here, and just passed my NCLEX!!!!! I will be starting a position in NICU next month. I am very excited and very nervous about it at the same time. I will be working at a large children's hospital in a Level 3 NICU.

When I applied the posting said "new grads apply here", but the requirements stated "only those with 2 years NICU experience will be considered". Anyway, they interviewed me and hired me although I had only spent 10 hours observing in NICU during my OB rotation. The nurse manager was impressed with my references from both school and work, as well as my grades throughout nursing school, and my passion for working in NICU so she hired me.

So needless to say, I have no idea what to expect when I begin, and need to review some of the neonatal info before I begin. I like to read, but find textbooks very dry and boring. Does anyone know of any novel-type non-fiction books about NICU that might be good to read? I love to read "normal" books.

I know that there are posts on which books are recommended for new grads, but all seem like textbooks ... don't have the money to buy the book right now, and the closest library that might be able to get it for me is about 40 minutes away.

Thanks for your help!!

[KYCNM]

Your nursing texts may be dry, but they have some of the information in them that you need to function in a position as an RN in the NICU. You will need to be able to do a very thorough infant assessment, so I would start with the section on assessment of the newborn because you need to know newborn assessment inside out. If you have a friend with a baby, ask if you can practice auscultating heart, lungs and abdomen because with the smaller size auscultation is much more difficult. Learn the reflexes expected in a newborn. Once you have the newborn mastered, if you have time, move on to the high risk infant content where you will probably find information on premies, although they are different "creatures" than newborns.

There are books for parents who have preemies listed on Amazon (just enter NICU books). One, by Luddington, is about kangaroo care. You could read up on kangaroo care (there are some good articles on the Internet) so that you will be up to speed on that content and type of care.

Good luck, hope this helps.

[GoldenLove]

I totally agree..your nursing texts are some of the best info you will get. I am a peds nurse but didn't move into NICU/PICU until I was 5 years established in regular peds. The American Nurses Association has a book out called "Neonatal Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice" which is a help but of course "hands on" was the best for me. Good Luck to you...it's a hard but rewarding field.:welcome:

[ccnicurn]

I have found the book "neonatology review" by Dara Brodsky, MD, and Camillia Martin, MD, very helpful as an ongoing resource. It is nice because it is more in a detailed outline format rather than long neverending chapeters. It has all important info starting with antepartum through chronic lung disease. Arterial blood gas interpretation, lab values, diseases specific to the NICU and treatments, etc. I will be using it as a review when I sit for my NNP licensure. Hope it helps!

[NICURNStepharelli]

Thanks for the advice. I figured that there would not be a book like that ... but I thought I would ask.

[RainDreamer, BSN, RN]

I didn't get bogged down by textbooks before I started working in the NICU. Once I started working I asked for some book recommendations. But mostly my preceptor would just lend me one of her books while on our shift and I'd read through different things she'd want me to look. But mostly she just taught me a lot herself. I'm such a visual learner so it was a lot easier for me to do things and learn about them, or for me to just hear it from her, and get a basic explanation, then I could read more about it in depth at a later time. And once I got my feet wet a bit and wasn't so overwhelmed and intimidated I started reading more.

If you do want something to read though, but not textbooks, then I'd just get some journals. Check out Neonatal Network and get their journal, they have some great articles. That way you can read through the stuff that interests you without being bogged down by too much detail this early on.

Good luck to you!