champagnesupeRNova

On my unit, this would not be an appropriate assignment. They would pair #1 and #3 together - it would not be a triple. Don't feel bad - anyone would be busy in that type of assignment!

-The incidence of BPD (Bronchopulmonary dysplasia) in infants born prematurely (and most likely previously ventilated) -Necrotizing enterocolitis in premature babies -Use of oral sucrose prior to minor painful procedures in the NICU (When I was a nursing student, I did a paper on this and found many articles, including a Cochrane Review)

$350 one-time bonus. Exam fees and certification review class paid for.

That is crazy, against evidence based practice for the NICU setting, and I would not participate in it. Our hospital does not expect NICU/PICU to follow positioning recommendations that are based on the adult population. I am actually mad for you. The only time I've seen our babies get pressure ulcers is from CPAP gear, but we implemented a new skincare policy (hydrocolloid barrier and skin checks q shift) and the problem went away.

"There's no way I'm paying any crazy co-pays! I Googled how to do this surgery and won't be needing you."

Overall, it sounds like you did really well considering you are a month off orientation! I think it was irresponsible of your unit to expect you to handle a 28-weeker delivery, especially when you were just off of orientation. Even the seasoned nurses in our unit take a second person with them to a micro-preemie delivery in case there's a code or just for back-up - and we get a lot of micro-preemies. Whenever you are thrown into a situation like this where things are not set-up, make sure to quickly check all the most important things first like suction (tubing, mec aspirator, Delee, make sure settings are appropriate) and respiratory equipment (intubation supplies in the right sizes, etc). And always check everything yourself if you can. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to check equipment and there are several things missing. It happens. I even take a small bag filled with supplies I might need every time I go to a delivery in case the supplies are not already on the table. You never know what you're going to walk into when there are multiple deliveries a day.

"For Christmas this year I'm going to need 6 weeks paid vacation, 2 hour lunch breaks, and helicopter transport to work. I'm sure we can come to an agreement, can't we?"

"So I hear you're the one who decided to put prescription drug ad pens in our stockings last year."

It just depends on the unit. On our unit, managers are pretty flexible when it comes to weddings/honeymoons. They're not HAPPY about giving extended time off, but they know it's an important life event. One of the girls that just got hired on our unit got married and had her honeymoon during orientation and they gave her a week off. Which when combined with her regular days off, she had off 15 days in a row. Just be honest and open about it with them in the interview and see what happens.

I don't understand why people get so worked up every time a student asks questions for an interview or a homework question. Just IGNORE IT and move on if it bothers you so much. Pages and pages of useless commentary...

Baby in our NICU born with 2 natal teeth. One day the nurse noticed that one was missing. Found the tooth on x-ray in the stomach! Amazing that she didn't aspirate or choke.

We place them in side-lying position against the parents' chests.

How is it even possible to do prone with the head midline?

Yup, this is the ultimate paradox of a 12-hour shift/every other weekend schedule. I feel you. But I also would never go back to working 8-hour days/5 days a week - sucked the life out of me.

I LOVE re-taping ETTs. I know that sounds weird, but nothing is more satisfying than when your baby is constantly de-satting, then you re-tape their ETT and you can magically wean their FiO2 considerably. Also: -IV starts and drawing cultures -Giving baths, especially a first bath. In the NICU sometimes the baby is 3-4 weeks old and has never had one. -Re-doing a PICC line dressing so it's all nice and occlusive -Helping a parent take their baby out for skin-to-skin care for the first time