What Do you Like and Dislike About the NICU??

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I'm about to enter nursing school, and I always wanted to work with babies... whether it be the NICU, Labor/Delivery, well-babies & mommy care, or whatever else there is out there. I'm very interested in the NICU though. I know in the beginning I probably won't be working where I want to be at, but hopefully in the future. Are there special classes and training you have to go through to get a job in the NICU? What is great about working here, and what are some of the downfalls? Would you change jobs/specialties if you could?? Thanks for any info you can give me :)

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Well, I am currently in nursing school myself, but I am working in a NICU as a unit assistant. What I do love about it, is watching the nurses work as a team...there is no your patient or my patient. The teamwork aspect is great. I also love to see when little ones start growing...watching a 27 weeker who weighed less than 2 lbs at birth, now at close to 4 lbs and getting ready to go home. We also had a set of quads born about a month ago which was exciting.

I can't say what I dislike but every once in a while we hear of a baby demise for a mom waiting to deliver in the LDR...to me that is quite sad. We've a computer board that lets us see who is getting ready to deliver along with antepartum moms and mom's in triage. We keep an eye out for those mom's that are less than 35 weeks as well as any that may be transferred to one of the ORs for a c/s. Many times we are called for standby resus between the LDR and OR.

Kris

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Hi SL1011,

There are actually several threads started about what people like/don't like about NICU nursing. Look in the sticky section (at the top) for some topics about why people love working in the NICU-- there are great stories in there :) Also, here is a thread about the difficult aspects of working in the NICU: https://allnurses.com/forums/f33/hardest-things-deal-nicu-301316.html

Regarding your comment about probably not being able to start in certain areas as a new grad, please don't let that prevent you from trying! I thought it would be difficult to get into this area as a new grad (actually didn't think of it as a possibility), and I am currently doing a year of med surg and hoping to get into NICU after this. After reading this forum frequently, it sounds like several NICUs gladly hire new grads and I def wish I would have applied initially! I suppose it depends on the unit/part of the country. Also, you can apply for nurse internships (between your junior and senior year if you are BSN, not sure about 2 year) in specific areas. It would get your foot in the door in a NICU if you got one. Good luck!

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Specializes in NICU.

Likes:

-Seeing a sick kid recover...for example had a PPHN kid on 100% o2 on the oscillator, nitric, BP meds. Came back a week later and the kid was on a nasal cannula nippling all feeds...

-Having patients so small I can easily turn them in bed without breaking my back.

-A rarity for me since I'm primarily a level III nurse: Cuddling with a cute feeder/grower after a feed when there's nothing else to be done.

-I enjoy the preemies best.

Dislikes:

-Hovering parents (usually)

-When the Drs don't listen to what I am saying

-Sepsis workups

-Watching kids whose parents "want everything done" suffer and be miserable. We have a long-term PPHN kid who has a poor prognosis and the saddest thing is to look at him and see a single tear fall down his cheek- he is miserable.

-Seeing the bad outcomes...the 23 weeker who lived, but with severe handicaps.

-Birth trauma kids are the saddest imo...Got the nursery ready, car seat in the car...and next thing you're planning a funeral bc your child is brain dead (or if they do survive, they usually have a bit of neuro problems). Very very sad.

-Death (although usually in these cases there are things worse than death as mentioned above)

-Fussy cardiac, GI, chronics who cry and cry (more like whine because its not a full out cry) all the time without a good explanation.

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Specializes in NICU- now learning OR!.

I worked in the NICU right out of nursing school. It was the most rewarding job I have ever had in my life. I often felt proud when I left for the day, HOWEVER, it was also the HARDEST job that I have ever had! (emotionally, spiritually, not physically)

I finally had to leave because I just couldn't stay. (I know, sounds stupid)

Too many sick babies...dying babies...the same babies that I took care of day in and day out and had grown very attached to! One family had a baby that would require lifelong care...I spent HOURS teaching them her care and encouraging them...and they decided to give her up for adoption at 4 months of age...it just broke my heart! I have sooo many good stories, yet I have so very many SAD stories. One mom was so upset when her daughter was having a "bad" day (lots of lab draws for blood gases,etc.) and she just yelled at me "NO ONE SHOULD GET USED TO SEEING BABIES IN PAIN LIKE THIS!" and it really hit home for me...because we HAD to get used to it! There were some days that all I did was cause a child pain (at least in my eyes) suctioning, poking (IVs and labs) even with the quickest, most skilled "hands on" some babies have such sensitive nervous systems that I truly felt that I spent the last 12 hours torturing babies!

Whew! Sorry for the vent!

Jenny

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Specializes in NICU, Telephone Triage.
I'm about to enter nursing school, and I always wanted to work with babies... whether it be the NICU, Labor/Delivery, well-babies & mommy care, or whatever else there is out there. I'm very interested in the NICU though. I know in the beginning I probably won't be working where I want to be at, but hopefully in the future. Are there special classes and training you have to go through to get a job in the NICU? What is great about working here, and what are some of the downfalls? Would you change jobs/specialties if you could?? Thanks for any info you can give me :)

Yes, you need to complete a NICU training program, which usually last around 3 months. I've been a NICU nurse for 18 years and the thing I hate the most is letting the parents make major decisions which are not in the baby's best interest. ie: leaving a baby with a flat EEG on a ventilator and torturing him with needless medical procedures when the baby should go to baby heaven. After weeks of allowing this type of action to go on, the parents need to understand they are not helping their baby by keeping him/her artificially alive when there is no hope!

This may sound harsh, but it is a NICU reality.

I like seeing the good outcomes when a baby goes home and we helped the baby become healthy.

And yes, sometimes I feel like quitting and getting a nursing job that doesn't involve so many ethical dilemmas.:banghead:

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