I am still in nursing school, 3rd semester. I have been considering working in the NICU and I've decided to post my thoughts and feelings on why I want to do this. I'm interested to receive feedback on whether my reasons are sufficient and if my feelings are shared by others who have chosen a career path in the NICU or if I am misreading my own feelings and am fooling myself into believing I am suited for working in the NICU. please bear with me because it is long, but important to me to have feedback.
- Babies are the innocence of the world- they all deserve the most devoted and passionate advocates, whether it be the last caring touch before beginning their life outside the hospital doors or the last caring touch while taking their last breath of life.
- The parents of the v babies need advocates, too. The parents need someone who they can feel comfortable with, someone they feel their baby is safe with. Someone to keep a threshold of hope, especially when theirs is wavering. Someone to connect with when b they feel no one else can possibly understand how they feel. Someone who knows they, in fact, can never fully understand how they feel, but is possibly the only one who can come close to understanding. Someone who can recognize and differentiate between sympathy and empathy; who can be okay with not completely understanding the emotional rollercoaster the parents are on, but has the desire and drive to keep trying to relate in all ways possible.
- I was born addicted to drugs, and although I will never be able to fully comprehend how the nurses felt while caring for me, it's enough to know that someone spent long hours of their time, donated their emotions and knowledge to me in hopes of me living a full life. That is amazing and instills an immeasurable amount of appreciation in me. I would love to make that kind of difference in someone else's life. Not because I want to feel important, not because I want to be thanked, but because at the end of the day, whether acknowledged or not, I know I have played a positive part in making a difference to the patient and the family. Whether the final outcome is ideal or devastating, the important thing is to do it because you want to, because you wouldn't feel right not doing it.
- The NICU is also appealing to me in a medical sense. Babies are intricate, they require keen senses, attention to detail, and someone willing to learn more, research odd or foreign problems, symptoms, and possibilities. They deserve someone who is willing to do more, someone who wants the answers. I am an inquisitive person, a critical thinker, an abstract thinker. I take all possibilities into considerations and that in turn keeps my eyes and brain open and aware of all details.
- They (patient and family) deserve someone who understands the balance of science and support. Someone who sees the line between wanting a cure and knowing when enough is enough. Someone who wants to do everything medically possible yet understands and accepts when the more important move is to provide support, and care for the baby and the family. Someone who can provide caring communication and read people and be willing to connect on many different (professional) levels. I believe I have all of these qualities,
I think I have heard of "compassion fatigue" and I have had concerns about that for myself. I do believe that working because you need the money is completely okay, but I was talking more about ppl choosing nursing ONLY because they think it pays well( I know there are discrepancies about that). I guess when I say that money is a bad motive I am thinking back to an experience a close friend of mine had in clinical where some of our classmates refused to give a patient a bath because that "wasn't their job" and that's the reason they were going for their BSN( apparently they think they won't have to bathe anyone). These people are the ones who are in the profession for the wrong reasons. Of course people are nurses because they need money, but if that's the only reason and you have absolutely no love for the job then you may not turn out to be the best nurse, and I understand that some nurses who love what they do may not be the best, either. I know motives done necessarily determine how you do your job, but I see it as being on a continuum rather than just a black and white statement.
Here's a piece of advice: do not disclose the fact that you were born addicted to drugs during an interview.
You could just say you were a NICU baby. That would get the point across--neat way to 'complete the circle', so to speak. And you are absolutely right, there are the people out there who really shouldn't be in nursing and patient care suffers for it. It really does sound like you are on the right track and I really do hope you are able to get into a NICU. Does your program do a senior capstone or internship where you might be able to spend some time in NICU? That usually helps when trying to get a NICU position as a new grad.
Thank you very much! And yes, I'm pretty sure our program let's us do internships during the last semester. I'm going into 3rd semester in January so I will have OB/pedi rotation and am pretty excited about that! I really do believe NICU is where I want to be but I'm also very aware that that may change quickly! I haven't experienced everything yet so I can't say for sure. Its always been close between NICU and ER, so we will see!
I just wanted to put my two sense in here about motives and what not. I will admit it, when I decided to go to college (at 26) I decided to go into nursing because of job security and it's a good living. I didn't grow up wanting to be in the medical field, I didn't take medical classes in high school, not interested at all actually. I went through nursing school and wanted psych because I thought I would be helping the patients (mentally), emotionally, and I loved the idea of learning about psychotic breaks, schizophrenic episodes, etc. I was there 2 years, absolutely loved every minute of it, never felt I was going to work, I loved my job. I left because of management was changing and a lot of things was happening, and I wanted to get some other nursing experience. I applied everywhere except med-surg, got a call from NICU. I shadowed a nurse for an hour and absolutely fell in love with the NICU. I had my peer interview after that. The manager said it would be a week or so after everyone is interviewed before they had an answer. In reality, I received a call from HR before I even left the parking lot offering me the job. I haven't been there long, but still absolutely love it.
You definitely have to love babies to be in the NICU, you have to be strong enough to be able to get through a death, and quick thinking enough to handle a code situation, you have to be diligent enough to see signs of a baby going down hill. I agree with another poster who said all patients in all areas need the same care you described. I think all nurses are compassionate and caring, it just depends on what age bracket you want to work with. Some people will never work with infants, children, adults, or geriatrics, some will never work in psych or L&D, some could never handle oncology. Every one has different reasons for different wants or dislikes, and all is ok. That's why there is different fields with different nurses and you are required to work any certain floor in a hospital. Good luck to you
I agree with the other experienced NICU nurses who have responded to this thread. There is nothing wrong with the "intellectualizing" the OP has done on her motives. It's just that I think they are unnecessary and make her sound a bit young and naive.
As most experienced NICU nurses will tell you ...
1. You are either a NICU person or you are not -- and that tends to be a matter of your heart/gut than of your head. Either you are drawn to those little critters and like giving them "kick-ass care" or you don't.
2. No one person's motives are better or worse than any other person's -- as long as they do the job. Some very successful NICU nurses are not particularly attracted to the babies, but that's OK. People who go into nursing for the money, the security, etc. can be just as good as nurses. Sometimes, they are even better nurses than people who are "on a mission from God" and/or who get all emotionally soppy about it. You need to be tough to be a NICU nurse and sometimes, people who are all emotional/passionate about it struggle the most.
I agree with the other experienced NICU nurses who have responded to this thread. There is nothing wrong with the "intellectualizing" the OP has done on her motives. It's just that I think they are unnecessary and make her sound a bit young and naive.
As most experienced NICU nurses will tell you ...
1. You are either a NICU person or you are not -- and that tends to be a matter of your heart/gut than of your head. Either you are drawn to those little critters and like giving them "kick-ass care" or you don't.
2. No one person's motives are better or worse than any other person's -- as long as they do the job. Some very successful NICU nurses are not particularly attracted to the babies, but that's OK. People who go into nursing for the money, the security, etc. can be just as good as nurses. Sometimes, they are even better nurses than people who are "on a mission from God" and/or who get all emotionally soppy about it. You need to be tough to be a NICU nurse and sometimes, people who are all emotional/passionate about it struggle the most.
Thank you for saying this. OP, this isn't a rag on you, but I sometimes really have a hard time with some people who do get absolutely emotional about NICU or nursing in general, partially because I do not. I love what I do and I see why some people call it a calling, however, I have never seen it as such. I do not think that it makes me less of a nurse or diminishes the care that I provide, but I have had other nurses in my unit make comments along the line that "I don't think you'll make it in NICU, because I, for one, couldn't imagine doing anything but NICU, but you just wanted to try it." I do have a passion for what I do in the NICU, but I am practical enough to be adaptable
Dreams don't always live up to reality, sometimes they disappoint, sometimes they break your heart. That can be very difficult for some to swallow, especially if they have been single-mindedly pursuing a dream and putting it on a pedestal, so to speak. NICU can be incredibly difficult at times. You need to be able to step back, keep some distance, you can't take everything to heart and you can't take your job home with you. It's also incredibly rewarding. THere just needs to be a balance.
Here's a piece of advice: do not disclose the fact that you were born addicted to drugs during an interview. Interviewers can be as judgmental as anyone else in society, and you do not want to reveal anything about yourself that would give the impression that your origins may have started on the wrong side of the tracks.
I have to agree with this. People are judgmental and jump to conclusions. They might think of you as an at risk employee or someone with family-social issues that might affect work. If you were a NICU baby you could simply tell them you were born with birth complications and in the NICU yourself, etc.
I have to comment on this as someone who chose nursing because MSN Money said it was one of the better paying careers that didn't require a bachelor degree. I'm not sure I even understood what nurses did before I went into school. Additionally, while in nursing school I decided I never wanted work in ICU or with children. Guess what, i'm a great nurse and I go the extra mile for each and every one of my babies. My journey to the NICU was pretty circuitous but I can't imagine doing anything else now that i'm here.
I also want to add that not everyone is cut out for the NICU and that is okay. I think in addition to being aware of your personal reasons as to why you would choose a career in the NICU, you should also take a really deep look at your own personal idiosyncrasies. There are environments that bring out the best and worst in some people and the NICU seems to be one of them. I find myself confronting my own demons on a day to day basis in the NICU, but that is what I love most about it. I have met some really fantastic nurses whose temperaments and personalities just didn't mesh well with the ICU part of the NICU. My best friend could take care of feeder/growers all night long, but once she started on the really sick kiddos she realized that the high stress/high stakes environment just wasn't for her. She is as equally passionate as you about babies as patients, but had the wherewithal to realize that her strengths and weaknesses were better suited somewhere else. She now works in Post Partum doing couplet care and absolutely loves it. I admire her for putting her ego aside...she got a lot of flack for her decision to leave our unit and she was really torn up about it. There are a lot of "gunners" in the NICU who feed off of the stress and are some damn fantastic nurses, but can be very judgmental to those who aren't like them. Honing the skills to be successful in the NICU takes years.
I personally think a great nurse is a great nurse, regardless of where you work, as long as you develop the skill set emotionally, physically, and mentally to be the best you can be.
nursingstudent0814
8 Posts
I couldn't agree more! Absolutely all patients deserve all of those things!