chandjl

We have a program at our hospital called resolve through sharing. We ask parents if they would like their baby baptized or blessed, often they call their own clergy, or we can do it for them. We dress the baby in little gowns hats and blankets that are donated. We take hand and foot prints. We give the parents a disposable camera and ask if they would like to take pictures or have us take them or not at all. We have a checklist to go through to make sure everything gets done. We let the parents set the pace of how long they would like to hold the baby or wait until later, whether they want to be alone or have one of us there. We also refer them to support groups.

Keep trying! If you can get a job on a peds unit or maternity where you can get experience with full term newborns and older babies will help. take a PALS class. Watch the job postings. Sometimes it's easier to get hired in a level 2 nicu to start out with. Keep letting the nicu managers in your area know you are interested.