LaNICUnurse

Giraffe beds are wonderful. Our unit is supposed to buy 8 more. We love them. I agree with all the other NICU nurses. I would never do anything else. I love my job.

Hello Everyone, I know that this has been a thread before, but we haven't had a program for it. I want to get a volunteer program started in our NICU. Any input from NICU's that are already using volunteers would be appreciated. What criteria do you have to use them? What are they allowed to do? How do you train them? Any problems you have run into? Please contact me.

How many do you have trained to work in the units? How many work at one time? Or, do you have any limits?

Hey Everybody, I'm trying to find out how many NICU's are using volunteers. What are they allowed to do? What kinds of rules, and regs do you have? What kind of background checks do you do? Thanks in Advance for you help.

OUCH!!!

I'm sure it was very difficult for the family. I am glad they were able to look past their loss, and do what was right for their child.

I already e-mailed the link to 2 other nurses, and intend to talk to our surgeons about it the next time I see them. LOL, they won't hear the end of it from me till we're doing it and putting our babies on the registry for tracking.

Thank you Gompers, I watched this and it explains, and shows the operation very well. I was glued till it finished. It gives me hope that it will work and sounds like it has been working for the ones who have already received the procedure. It is AMAZING!!!

Yep, larger teaching hospital to learn then smaller to stay. Also, staffing is usually more of a problem at a larger hospital. So, you can choose your hours, and work more as you feel able. I went from a teaching hospital to a community hosp, the units are about the same size, but the staff attitudes and atmosphere is better at the community hospital. Also, being able to follow babies from beginning to end is rewarding.

In our unit, 40 bed, most of the staff has been there for more than 10 years, alot of them for 20-30. We just had an RT who retired after 47 years. They go from relief, to full time, to part time according to what is going on in their lives. They also change roles in the hospital, we have some who have been staff, directors, and charge nurses, they change from one to the other and there are some adjustment on everyones parts, but we live through it. They are always welcomed back and it is like a family, not everyone gets along perfectly all the time, but like I said its like a family. Changing to days is probably the best action. I did it after ten years and it changed my thinking on NICU. Taking a break gives you a different perspective. And, you can always go back to it, and even not totally leave it.

Thanks for the info.

You are right, however, I meet a lot of adult nurses that wouldn't step foot in my unit to work. Just like I won't step foot on an adult floor. I went to school so that I could do what I am doing, it was my goal, not the money. And, you consider yourself adequately compensated? I am single, support myself and my finances are an issue also. But, I think you should love what you do, if I didn't I wouldn't be in NICU. There are plenty of nurses that come through who don't like NICU either. Also, there are plenty of jobs that pay much more.

I never said we were. Sheesh.

And where she is allowed to work, and the money in her wallet....sheesh. Yes, it is less than an RN when you can not work in the same places I do, and when you can not do the same things I do. You can not automatically come out of your program and do IVs, work in ICUs, those are the things I wanted to do when I came out of school. You do get more grunt work. Yes, most of your chores are the same. But, the RN license is responsible for the LPN, or LVN. That is law. Yes, you also have the responsibility, but when it comes down to my license, your action can affect mine. If you are not good at what you do, and I don't catch that, I can loose mine, because I am supposed to delegate to you. You do not delegate to RNs and if you do, that RN is not doing her job.

I don't know much about it. Our surgeons are putting it out as a hope for our parents. I think it relates to the pull through method for Hirschprungs. We do a lot of those, and they work. If the lengthening works half as well, I can't wait till we see it as a real option.