Are you drawn to a professional career that involves challenging yet rewarding work, where you assist with enhancing the lives of other people? If so, nursing perfectly fits the bill.

Along with being a respected and trusted profession, nursing has one significant advantage for those seeking a long-term occupation: high demand. Following a recent report covered by the BBC, it is clear there isn’t a shortage of jobs for nurses:

“The NHS will need to recruit 5,000 new nurses from abroad every year – three times the figure it is currently recruiting.”

While you may have settled on the decision of becoming a nurse, this is only the start. You also need to answer the question of which nursing sector to specialise in. The reason: there are many, many different nursing specialists – over 100 in fact. When you consider that nurses have an important role in nearly every facet of healthcare, it should come as no surprise.

As for which specialist nursing role is best, there is no definitive answer. Ultimately, it comes down to personal preference. Do you have a particular interest in working with newborns? If this is the case, becoming a neonatal nurse is a fine choice. Along with being a popular and rewarding role, job opportunities for neonatal nurses will continue to grow as it is presently on the national shortage occupational list.

The role of a neonatal nurse

Neonatal nurses are tasked with caring for newborns that enter the world prematurely or in a sick state. The latter could include surgical issues, cardiac malformations, infection, and birth defects.

While neonatal is defined as covering the initial month of a baby’s life, the work of a neonatal nurse can carry on for much longer than that. In certain cases, neonatal nurses may have to observe an infant until they’re two years of age.

As the role is centered in the intensive care unit, there’s no slacking for neonatal nurses. They must remain attentive round-the-clock and constantly monitor the conditions of their patients. Other day-to-day tasks include administering medications and assorted IV fluids, supplying general care and comfort to newborns, and providing feedings.

As attention is needed at all times, it’s common for neonatal nurses to work long shifts where they can care for more than four babies at a time.

Alternative nursing options

For those seeking to go down the neonatal route as a nurse, the reason is typically due to their interest in working with babies. However, there are numerous other nurse types that work with newborns and children.

Understandably, this can be confusing. If you have only started to scratch the surface with regards to the diverse nursing roles available, the question is: How does a neonatal nurse differ from these alternative – yet similar – options?

For a clearer picture, here’s a breakdown of three other choices you might want to ponder:

• Perinatal nurses: A perinatal nurse has the duty to care for women as they go through the stages of pregnancy, birth, and post-pregnancy. The work involves educating pregnant women about their unborn baby, the steps to take to have a healthy pregnancy, and techniques for relaxing during the pregnancy. Once the pregnancy is over, a perinatal nurse may also have to help with postpartum, a disorder that can cause women to suffer from depression after childbirth. Additionally, this nursing role involves caring for the baby throughout its first month of life.
• Labour and delivery nurses: Based on the job title, no guesses are needed with regards to the general role of labour and delivery nurses. This nurse is involved during the entire process of childbirth. This includes the early stages of labour and post-delivery phase. Pain management advice, coaching expectant mothers through labour, and continually observing the vitals of the baby and mother are all covered by labour and delivery nurses. They also help with the delivery process by assisting physicians, and they will give guidance to new mothers with regards to bottle and breastfeeding their infants.
• Paediatric nurses: Although paediatric nurses don’t assist with newborns, they have an important role in working with infants and adolescents. Offering a helping hand for paediatricians, this specialist nurse will assess and treat conditions that are unique to the developmental phases associated with developing bodies. Along with this, the children’s parents will typically be educated and kept in the loop by the nurse in conjunction with the assessment/treatment provided.

The steps to becoming a successful neonatal nurse

Completing a neonatal nursing education course is the first thing you will need to do. You can choose one of the two entry options, which will affect how long it takes to complete it. As a standard, you need to have some experience in nursing, preferably at least a year in a nursing role. This is so that you are aware of all the current practices.

However, it’s also vital you have the right characteristics to be successful in this role.

First of all, you need to have a true passion for not just working with newborns, but also their families. Speaking of the latter, neonatal nurses need communication skills to convey information to families in a clear, compassionate manner. After all, a family that has a baby in an intensive care unit is one that will be suffering emotionally.

Accounting for the fact newborns cannot communicate vocally, it is important for neonatal nurses to have observational skills to identify any possible issues. On top of this, the nurses require a steady demeanor and sharpness to be able to deal with the fast-paced, high-pressure environment of a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

Becoming a neonatal nurse requires three vital components: skill, passion, and compassion. There’s a necessity for being able to cope working under pressure, and

The reward is a job that supplies an ample amount of work satisfaction and financial incentive. Furthermore, a neonatal nurse role is a gateway to other career opportunities. For those who desire to move forward in their profession, there are various advanced positions available. These include a unit manager administrative role and a neonatal nurse practitioner.

If you’re willing to be dedicated and work hard, there are many reasons why you will say ‘yes’ to becoming a neonatal nurse.