My experience in the NICU taught me a great deal of information on the complex care of patients in the neonatal phase. Through this experience, I received exposure to medical conditions that I have not had a great deal of contact with in my previous clinical experiences, including: bronchopulmonary dysplasia, retinopathy of prematurity, pulmonary hypertension, and coarctation of the aorta. Through working with my nurse, I gained knowledge about each of these diagnoses, how they were acquired, and what the treatment plan entailed. This experience also taught me the importance sticking to a schedule, acting quickly, and learning to recognize what the infant needs, as he or she is unable to verbalize their needs. Patients in the NICU cannot tell
you what they need, nor can they full defend for themselves. For example, an infant cannot turn themselves in they feel pain, change themselves when they go to the bathroom, cough of their own secretions. The infants completely rely on the nurse, or a caregiver, to assist in their care. A NICU nurse must always recognize his or her environment, determine the cause of any complications, and act quickly to reverse the cause.
Uebel, P. (1999). A case study of antenatal distress and consequent neonatal respiratory distress. Neonatal Network. 18 (5). 67-70
Education regarding unit or group thinking is to be encouraged and reinforced. The fact that newborn Rosarie will be entering the home poses unique challenges that will require all members of the family to work together. Maria, Jamie, and Alice must be educated on the signs and symptoms of respiratory distress in the newborn and interventions that must be initiated when distress occurs. The nurse responsible for this teaching must require both verbalization and return demonstration of skills learned to ensure proper reception of the information. Once skills are developed by the adults within the home, the remaining children should then be educated on the signs and symptoms as well and actively participate in care. Involving the entire family will bring a cohesive thinking, and allow the family to work as a unit. A marriage counseling referral should as be provided to Maria and Jamie in order for them to work out their existing issues improving their likelihood of a successful marriage. Routine “check in’s” (phone calls, visits, etc.) should be in place for the family both by social services and pediatricians. In addition, community outreach programs (food banks, cultural organizations, etc.) are designed to support families like the Perez’s, nurses working within the community should tell these families about these resources
Nurses play a big role in supporting the parents while their child is in the NICU. Showing compassion and demonstrating caring actions when caring for the patient makes it more likely that the parents will trust the nurse and the information the nurse gives them regarding their child’s condition. This trust is important as it helps the parents feel confident in the decisions they are making about their child’s care. When the parents of an ill child in the NICU have decided to terminate treatment palliative care by the nurse and other healthcare providers comes into play. Palliative care is keeping the child comfortable by treating the symptoms and being there for the parents and child physically, emotionally, and spiritually (Eden & Callister, 2010).
meet the challenge of preparing future nurses who will have the knowledge, skills and attitudes (KSAs) necessary to continuously improve the quality and safety of the healthcare systems within which they work” (QSEN, 2017). The six QSEN competencies include patient- centered care, teamwork and collaboration, evidence- based practice, quality improvement, safety, and informatics. Two QSEN competencies that relate to MAS are safety, and teamwork and collaboration. The nurse needs to have the knowledge, skills, and attitudes regarding MAS to ensure the newborn’s safety. In order to keep the newborn safe, the nurse must have critical thinking skills to be able to recognize and communicate pertinent information, such as new
Neonatal nursing is a field of nursing designed especially for both newborns and infants up to 28 days old. The term neonatal comes from neo, "new", and natal, "pertaining to birth or origin”. Neonatal nurses are a vital part of the neonatal care team. These are trained professionals who concentrate on ensuring that the newborn infants under their care are able to survive whatever potential life threatening event they encounter. They treat infants that are born with a variety of life threatening issues that include instances of prematurity, congenital birth defects, surgery related problems, cardiac malformations, severe burns, or acute infection. Neonatal care in hospitals was always done by the nursing staff but it did not officially become a specialized medical field until well into 1960s. This was due to the numerous advancements in both medical care training and related technology that allowed for the improved treatment and survival rate of premature babies. According to the March of Dimes, one of every thirteen babies born in the United States annually suffers from low birth weight. This is a leading cause in 65% of infant deaths. Therefore, nurses play a very important role in providing round the clock care for these infants, those born with birth defects or other life threatening illness. In addition, these nurses also tend to healthy babies while their mothers recover from the birthing process. Prior to the advent of this specialized nursing field at risk newborn infants were mostly cared for by obstetricians and midwives who had limited resources to help them survive (Meeks 3).
Mphahlele, R. R. (2007). Caring for premature babies - a clinical guide for nurses. Professional Nursing Today, 11(1), 40-46.
I think the most important quality for a NICU nurse is thorough knowledge, or the drive to obtain more. I want to share knowledge with parents to make it easier for them to learn and know everything they can about their child’s medical condition. I can help translate between the parents and the doctor’s medical jargon to make parents feel more as ease and understand their
Kain, V. (2006). Palliative care delivery in the NICU: what barriers do neonatal nurses face?. Neonatal Network: NN, 25(6), 387-392.
For this section of presentations, I learned about health professional jobs that focused on behavior health. This section’s class presentations focused on community needs, substance use disorders, and nursing simulation learning program. Each presentation was educational and interesting to learn about. I enjoyed learning about the simulation learning center and how the student nurses learn and engage in nursing school.
This paper will discuss a case study of Liam, a three-month-old boy who is transferred from the General Practitioner (GP) to paediatric ward with bronchiolitis. Initially, Liam’s chief health issues will be identified, following by nursing assessment and diagnoses of the child’s need. Focus will be made on the management of two major health problems: respiratory distress and dehydration, and summary and evaluation of the interventions with evidence of learning. Lastly, a conclusion of author’s self-evaluation will be present.
There are more than 70% of premature babies that are born between 34 and 36 weeks gestation a year. When a baby is born early, or born with birth defects, the Neonatal Intensive Care unit is its first home. The nurse’s in the NICU have the difficult job of preparing baby’s and parents for a health life together. A baby who has been put into the NICU will stay there until it is healthy enough to go home.
Hockenberry, M. J., & Wilson, D. (2013). Wong’s nursing care of infants and children + study guide: Multimedia enhanced version. Philadelphia, PA, United States: Elsevier Mosby.
Electronic Fetal Monitoring Technology has had a very prominent influence on electronic fetal monitoring since its appearance in the 1960’s and 1970’s. For many years, fetal monitoring was simply done by listening to a fetal heartbeat through a stethoscope. Dramatic changes in the heartbeat, such as a long period or a drop in the rate or intensity, could be detected,. Now, not only is the electronic fetal monitor used on the outside of the womb by strapping electrodes to the mother’s abdomen but electrodes can also be inserted during the first stage of labor and placed directly on the baby ’s head.
The next time I walked into a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit was as a fourth year medical student. This time not as a spectator, but as a medical professional expec...
This week’s clinical experience has been unlike any other. I went onto the unit knowing that I needed to be more independent and found myself to be both scared and intimidated. However, having the patients I did made my first mother baby clinical an exciting experience. I was able to create connections between what I saw on the unit and the theory we learned in lectures. In addition, I was able to see tricks other nurses on the unit have when providing care, and where others went wrong. Being aware of this enabled me to see the areas of mother baby nursing I understood and areas I need to further research to become a better nurse.