A day in the life of a Nursery Nurse
"I start my day on the Neonatal unit by going to handover with my other colleagues who I will be working on shift with, it's always very useful being updated on every patient on the ward before being allocated patients for the day. I then go into the nursery to receive a cot side handover with more in-depth information given regarding each baby such as how they have been that day and if anything is outstanding or needs doing.
As a Nursery nurse I am mostly allocated into our 'Nursery 2' room to help support the nurses. Babies are generally more stable medically and closer to being discharged to home, next door in Nursery 1 is where babies require more support. After cot side handover I complete my safety checks for each bay. I then look through the baby's paperwork to see how they are feeding, what monitoring they are requiring, if any medication is needed etc. As a nursery nurse I am not able to draw up medication for the patients, I must ask the nurses to do this for me. I am always so appreciative of the fact that no matter how busy a nurse may be, they are always more than happy to go and draw up the medications for me.
The Doctors come and do a ward round in the morning where they go to each baby and review them, drawing up a plan for them moving forward. I am asked questions about the baby such as how they are feeding, how their observations have been, if there are any concerns etc. Parents can come in for visits at any time and might be present when the doctors are there, if not I will update them upon arrival along with giving them an update on how their baby is.
As a Nursery Nurse I am very much involved in supporting parents with preparing them and their baby for going home. It is very rewarding supporting parents with things such as feeding, carrying out cares for their baby and discharging them to home. For example, giving a Mother one to one support if she chooses to breastfeed, with a hands off approach to positioning, attachment and signs of effective feeding. Also giving information and support with expressing milk. I have completed a course on infant feeding called the 'Baby friendly initiative'. It was such an interesting and informative course and has made such a positive impact on my everyday practice. It's an incredible feeling when you help a baby feed successfully. Seeing the parents faces light up as they watch their baby feed, however they chose to feed them, is lovely to see. It's a special moment for parents who have perhaps only up to that point seen their baby be fed through a nasogastric tube due to not being strong or well enough to feed another way. Encouraging parents to have skin to skin with their baby is also another special moment I enjoy helping with. Life can be so busy and hectic, a parent having that time to just hold their baby close and be in the moment with them is so important I feel. Along with the health benefits of skin to skin to both baby and parent such as bonding, regulating baby's heart rate and temperature, helping release oxytocin hormones which come in handy for milk supply etc. I often find myself feeling emotional when parents do finally take their baby home, what an incredible moment that must be for a family, especially if their baby has been on the Neonatal unit long term. The mixture of emotions that must go with it as well, relief and happiness that you are finally going to have your little one at home and not have to make daily trips to the hospital, but maybe also apprehension as you have perhaps become accustomed to the hospital environment with regards to care for your baby, with various medical equipment being used, charts being filled in and nurses always being present etc. Having an outreach team must be such a comfort and relief to a family, knowing they will be followed up at home and can ask any questions and be supported even after being discharged from the hospital.
Being a Nursery Nurse means being part of a team and I am so proud to be a part of it. You learn something new every day, work alongside incredible people, get to be a part of a patient's journey from admission to discharge and support their family along that journey." Vicky x
