When a baby is born, a lot of work goes into it from everyone around. The mother, going through miraculous changes of the body, along with extreme mental hysteria and excitement, is the main player on the field. Then there is the doctor delivering the baby, and taking care of the mother. All while there are several neonatal nurses that await the arrival of the baby, with more anticipation than anyone else in the room. Their job is to take the baby after the doctor delivers, and check vital signs to assure the baby is healthy. So much pressure goes into this job, and this is only the tip of the intense iceberg.
What is a Neonatal Nurse?
A Neonatal Nurse (RN), is a nurse who provides care for babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). To be a Neonatal Nurse, one must obtain a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and be certified to care for neonatal babies. They can become specialized and move on to Nurse Practitioner, as well as a specialized CRNP (Certified Registered Nurse Practitioner). The RN school to gain a BSN is 4 years, plus the extra courses for CRNP as well as the minimum clinical times.
Before choosing this position, one must realize what all is needed to succeed in this career. They must have an outstanding bedside manner because you will be communicating directly from the doctor to scared family members. There will be a lot of explanations face-to-face with concerned parents/family members. They must also have the ability to think quickly on your feet. This job requires extreme focus and precision, due to the instability of the patients. The orders will be given quickly from the head physician, and they must follow them through correctly. Memory is also another key concept for this career as well due to the fast pace that is set. If they are given certain orders for a patient, they must follow them through exactly as their superior intended. As a neonatal nurse, I will work long shifts, sometimes throughout the day or night without breaks, if I were to be monitoring an infant who needed constant attention, or was in critical condition. This job offers a sense of reward as well as the stress it brings. As this nurse, I will be able to connect with mothers and other family, and provide comfort and information about their baby. I will be able to translate the medical talk to them to make them feel a little better about what the doctor is saying. And most importantly, I can watch these babies everyday and see them fighting hard for themselves. To see that kind of strength in a newborn is incredible, especially if it is premature. Instincts take over and they fight will everything they have left.
According to an article from stateuniversity.com, “The first step toward becoming a neonatal nurse is getting a bachelor’s degree in nursing. This qualifies one as a registered nurse, or RN. Candidates must then get certification in Neonatal Intensive Care Nursing or Neonatal Resuscitation. In addition to this, it is essential to have at least three years of clinical experience. Candidates wishing to become neonatal nurse practitioners need to have a master’s degree in nursing. Students should opt for courses from institutes accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education”.
There are different ‘stages’ in which one can work as a NICU Nurse. Stage 1 takes care of healthier babies who have a higher possible outcome. These nurses would be found in labor and delivery. Stage 2 works with smaller, premature babies who are a bit more fragile than full term healthy babies. These babies usually only require a week or two in the hospital to get the baby’s weight up. Stage 3 works with severely ill premature/ full term babies who need 24/7 care and attention. Neonatal Nurses primarily work in the NICU, along with labor and delivery, the Emergency Room, and other sub-specialties. Their work environment is typical always very clean and sanitary, due to the weak immune systems of these babies. Some of their tasks are, Care for healthy infants, provide focused care for premature or ill newborns, or work exclusively with seriously ill newborns in a neonatal intensive care unit”.
Outlooks. This job is predicted to have a 26% growth increase within the next five years. Within the last ten years alone, the survival rates of premature/critical condition newborns has increased tremendously. This still has a large impact on the need for these nurses, and the need continues to grow. Even though technology has advanced outside of the womb, in vitro technology is still lacking. While it is still very impressive at this time, it is also very new. Most doctors do not practice it because it requires a second board certification, and a few years more training. This is usually a specialty profession, therefore the field is still rather small. This provides more work for the hospital labor and delivery units, creating more jobs for each stage level of neonatal nursing.
According to Nightingale College, in the state of Mississippi a neonatal nurse makes approximately $88,584 a year before taxes. That is around $42.59 an hour, and about $6,814 per month. Using the Mississippi Paycheck Calculator, it says a neonatal nurse brings home around $59,424 after state and federal taxes. This does not include insurance and other fees. Around %19.67 is withheld from state and federal taxes, and around %7.65 is held for FICA.
The average Mississippi 2-bedroom rental home averages around $746. The utilities for this home come to around $200 per month, and groceries are around $300 per month. This is determined from a two-person house-hold, and does not represent any other people in the totals. After adding car insurance, gas for the car, phone bill, car note, and miscellaneous fees such as Netflix and Spotify, the total comes to around $1,892 in bills. After that is deducted from the expected income, there is $3,060 left from the month. This would be a very comfortable job if I stay in Mississippi due to the low cost of living.
When I was growing up, my aunt Amy had just completed her BSN. My mom would watch my cousins all day and most nights, so that she could work. She would come home, and I remember asking her about her day and waiting for the crazy stories of the un-named patients. I would play pretend with my cousin where we would put on my moms old scrubs and we would both be nurses and take care of teddy bears and baby dolls. There has always been that thought in my head, of maybe one day I can wear these scrubs to an actual hospital and actually help people. When I got old enough to get a job, I became a nanny and babysitter for several families. Many of these families had babies. These babies were the highlight of my day, and one day I came to work and the baby was sick. I had to take care of her while her parents went to work, and had to trust me to adequately take care of their sick child. Once again, that feeling came back that I had not felt since I myself was a child, playing in old scrubs. I knew that I wanted to help people, specifically their children. When it comes to their children, most parents get even more nervous at the doctor than they do for themselves. I want to offer that comfort for them, and hopefully make the situation less worrisome.
CONCLUSION
After considering all the components of this career, it is very infatuating for me. This job is not for everyone, it is quite hard sometimes. Not every day is a good day, and some days are going to be great. The thing about this profession is the unknown outcome. Some babies are not always lucky enough to leave the NICU. It is the nurse’s job to provide safety and comfort for the baby while it is being taken care of. These babies are typically hooked up to every machine possible and this can cause stress for the child. Infants can detect stress, and if no one just holds them and soothes them, it is harder to recover. Not only do the babies get stressed, but the parents need someone there for them too. Someone they can talk to clearly and comfortably, as well as someone who can give them controlled details about their child. I hope more people will learn of the importance of these strong workers, and give them the recognition they so truly deserve.
