Neonatal nurses are a difficult group to describe. I had the privilege of a bird’s-eye view—working alongside them, though never being one of them.
If you’ve never seen a NICU nurse work, it’s quite amazing.
They can sense from a mile away when a tiny one-pound baby just isn’t herself. They will do everything in their power to convince the docs of this and will likely not let them leave for the day unless they get what they want for that baby. They can start an IV in a vein no wider than a thread or fishing line while blocking out all surrounding distractions.
They connect so deeply with families that, post-discharge, they’re invited to family gatherings, birthday parties – even college graduations. They think about the babies on their days off, and may come in from home if they are dying. They provide intentional and nurturing care one minute and run to a code the next.
Quite simply, they are expert at what they do.
Now that I’ve worked with and known them for decades, I must say I understand them and their protective nature. This little world in the NICU is unique. It is at once a place of celebrating new life and the grasping for it. It contains intense parental love, but also confusion, loss, and grief. It is often joyful. It can be devastating.
We tuck years of that pain into a place we pretend doesn’t exist in health care. We go home and kiss our children.
I can’t say enough about the dedication of this group of people. They make me laugh hysterically with the sarcasm and humor that comes with the territory. They stun me with the level of skill they take for granted and the patience with which they teach the unending line of new doctors, new nurses, families, and therapists like me.
It is an immense responsibility to dedicate your work to a place that never closes, which needs you for its smooth and competent running, where caring for fragile babies and their families is just part of a day’s work.
Thank you, NICU nurses—for your expertise, your example, and above all, your friendship.
Happy Neonatal Nurses Week!