Nursery Nurse Indifference

Sour Lemon · Sep 19, 2017

I'm a nursing student, currently in my maternity clinical. Since this was my initial area of interest when I first started school, to say I was excited would be an understatement. I don't have any children of my own, but absolutely love being around newborns. First day of clinical, we are in the nursery being accumulated to the area - where supplies are, how to do an assessment, etc. An RN is attending to a fussy baby - checked his diaper, swaddled him, sees if it's feeding time but alas the baby isn't pleased. To me, I would just pick him up and comfort him, right? She says, "Well looks like you just want attention", and leaves him crying. Uhhhh...what? I bring this up to a fellow student later on and she says that another RN said that they try not to pick up the babies if they don't actually need something because the baby will just cry if it senses a person is around. This just seems harsh to me and has made me question whether when I have kids if I will send them to the nursery. I understand that babies crying in the nursery is inevitable, but I would expect that if a nurse isn't doing a task, they would be tended to. So, is this a common practice, or did I just see an "off-day"?

It's not common to send your newborn to the nursery for any extended period of time. Most babies room in and the parents are actually expected to care for them.

I have two kids in diapers and one is sometimes crying while I'm tending to the other (or doing some other necessary task). If they're clean and fed and not hurt, etc. it's OK for them to cry for a few minutes.

Be wary when "person a" speaks for "person b". In some cases, "person a" is being completely misquoted, and in others, "person a's" comment(s) are being taken well out of context. Most people don't seek employment with babies and children because they don't like them.

Fiona59 · Sep 19, 2017

Rooming in with Mum is the norm in my area.

Nursery Nurses gave the first bath, monitored babes who's Mum's were off unit for tests or to smoke (don't be judgmental), or were just plain exhausted. The NN was also responsible for doing the car seat monitoring, monitoring jaundiced babes under the lights, etc.

Yes there were moments to hold and rock, but some parents don't want you to do it.

"be tended to" that's Mum's job.

jennylee321 · Sep 19, 2017

Yeah nurseries are becoming a thing of the past anyway, I've never actually seen one I'm real life only on tv. Much more common for mom and baby to be nurses in a room together.

To clarify, were you just in a normal newborn nursery ?

Calalilynurse · Sep 19, 2017

Newborn nurseries are being phased out rapidly and probably won't be a thing in 10 years. I've worked in a newborn nursery and you typically have 5-6 patients. Even if you do not appear to be doing nursing tasks you do not always have time to pick up every baby that starts crying. Some babies are crying just because they want to be held. If I can I usually give them a pacifier if not breastfeeding and try to let them self soothe before picking them up. Nursery is not just holding babies all the time and just because you don't pick up a baby every time they cry does not mean they are not getting good care. I have even had parents tell me they don't want their babies held all the time in the nursery. If their best feeding sometimes the only thing I can do is take them back to the room. I will hold them or ask a tech too if they are just inconsolable. If I'm just charting at night I will hold them at the desk and charting if I need to give mom and dad a break. It all depends.

Calalilynurse · Sep 19, 2017

I'll be glad when our hospital goes to mother baby. Nobody appreciates that 5-6 babies with labs, blood sugar checks, assessments, and all that charting is a lot of work. And a lot of the parents especially military want to keep their babies with them which I completely understand but we have to break them in because the pediatricians don't want to see them in the room.

allnurses Guide · Sep 19, 2017

During my time in the nursery during nursing school the nurses sadly let us know that they actually are not allowed to pick up and carry the babies around, not even with a baby carrier on. It is considered a fall risk. Therefore babies needing comfort went without until the mother was available or a volunteer came in to sit and rock the baby (rare in a regular nursery, where rooming in is the norm). The nurses have a lot to do, so getting paid to sit and rock babies isn't going to happen and if nurses aren't allowed to wear the babies while doing their work, the babies cry until they settle.

Beware your own idealism as you do your clinical rotations. Your perceptions of what you think nursing is will butt very frequently up against the reality of it, both during school and in particular during the first year to two years of your clinical practice. If people got paid to snuggle needy babies then the vast majority of us would be clamoring to do that instead of the hard work we actually do. Don't let your criticisms get in the way of critical thinking. None of us are immune to a crying baby. We have to find ways to deal with moral distress and the nurse you observed was doing that by speaking to the child, identifying the problem and likely working to get the baby back to its mother as soon as possible. That isn't "indifference". That is gittin' er done. Big difference.