5 Things to know about a Neonatal Care Nurse

1. Neonatal nursing is the provision of nursing care for newborn babies up to 28 days after birth. There are four different levels of neonatal nursing. Level I ensures care for healthy newborns. They typically share a room with their mother. Level II provides special care to premature or ailing newborn babies. Nursing staff provides the special therapy if needed.

Level III is the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), where newborns are provided with breathing and feeding tubes 90% of the NICU staff are nurses. Level IV treats most critical and complex newborns with the help of neonatolists and surgeons.

2. Neonatal Nurses can work either within the community or in specialist neonatal units. Specializations for this field may vary in three levels–Level I, Level II, and Level III. Level IV is mostly for highly skilled medical professionals such as neonatolists and surgeons.

3. Neonatal Nurses take care of premature babies having specific health concerns such as cardiovascular and respiratory problems. As these are life-threatening for an infant, their responsibilities increase manifold.

4. Another key function of a Neonatal Nurse is to console the parents in times of stress and anxiety. They encourage parents and family members during the critical care and motivate them to gain strength and take care of the infants.

5. The Neonatal Nurses are trained professionals. They go through three paths before becoming a Registered Nurse (RN) – Diploma programs, Associate Degree and Bachelor’s Degree. In addition, they get a license, as all states in the U.S. require all RNs to be licensed. In most cases, they are required to gain experience working with children or infants prior to being hired. Certification is another optional step, but most nurses undertake this to boost their career and profile.

5 Things Nurses must know about Code of Ethics

They work hard to heal the wounds and give a soothing touch to the patients to relieve their pain. But, it’s also true that nurses face ethical challenges every day. In this context, it’s necessary for them to understand the revised Code of Ethics for Nurses well. It’s a professional responsibility to know about their ethical obligations and accountability that would come their way. Here are five changes that matter the most for them.

1. Compassion and Respect: The Nurses are the first point contact for the patients. They know the pulse of the patients and their requirements better. It’s very essential for them not to lose cool and treat the patients with compassion. They can act tough when the situation demands, but without being abusive. The nurses and other health professionals may not make derogatory remarks about the patients or their families, which would vitiate the atmosphere and demoralize the patients.

2. Commitment to the Patient: It is important for the nurses to be involved in supporting patients in making decisions and helping them in resolving their queries. It is very much necessary for the nurses to read the mood of the patients and serve them in a much better way. Their commitment should be towards their profession and patients’ interests first.

3. Protect the Patient’s Rights: The Nurses must promote and protect the patients’ health, safety and rights without any bias. They must exercise restraint not to sneak a peak at high profile patients’ medical records.

4. Fixing Accountability: The Nurses have the authority and responsibility for nursing practice. They must assess the situation and bring it to the notice of the physician or manager when any patient is too sick to go home and need further care at the hospital or care clinic only. They will have to fix the accountability for themselves in such cases.

5. Supporting Social Justice: Nurses deal with social justice issues every day, in every role. Nurses need to think about their responsibilities related to mental health of people, ending discrimination and fighting sex trafficking. They need to be updated about social issues so that they can discharge their duties and contribute their bit when the time comes.

What is the NCLEX?

Getting an RN to BSN education is a worthy accomplishment indicating an individual has spent a great deal of time and effort to earn the degree, However, if a student has yet to qualify as a Registered Nurse (RN), taking the >National Council Licensure Examination, or NCLEX, is necessary for obtaining license to work. Every state has a board of nursing that sets the standards for the test determining if any candidate is prepared sufficiently to begin a career at an entry level.

Examination Eligibility
Every applicant for a nursing license needs to apply for the NCLEX through the local nursing board in the state of residence. The board determines if an applicant has the necessary credentials to sit for the test. Once determine, an applicant needs to register to take the exam.

NCLEX Test Content
There are several separate subjects each NCLEX test taker will be quizzed about including:

  • Maintaining a safe and effective environment through following effective infection control, safety and care management procedures
  • Understanding patient health maintenance and promotion through knowledge of human growth and development coupled with the early detection and prevention of disease
  • Ability to cope and adapt in an ongoing psychosocial setting maintain professional integrity
  • Understanding and ability to provide basic care and comfort, pharmacological therapies, risk potential reductions and additional physiological adaptions

NCLEX Registration
After a student has applied f to take the NCLEX exam, an Examination Candidate Bulletin will be sent through the U.S. mail from the local state board of nursing. Now the applicant can register to take the exam with the designated testing service assigned by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. Registration can be conducted through filling out a mail-in form or by telephone. Once registered, exam candidates receive an Authorization to Take the Test, ATT, as soon as the local state board of nursing has verified the applicant’s eligibility to sit for the NCLEX. Al list of testing centers is provided for choosing one convenient to the candidate’s needs.

Test Format
This is a multiple-choice test that uses an interactive computer-based methodology known as Computerized Adaptive Testing, or CAT. All RN candidates have to answer a minimum of 75 questions and complete the test within five hours. The time allotted includes the necessary time for computer use tutorial as well as two assigned 10-minute breaks. Scores will be first generated by the testing computer and then verified by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing’s testing service. If a test taker is obviously well above the standard set, the test taker will pass. If below the standard, the test taker has failed. If the test taking is so close the computer cannot determine pass or fail, additional questions will be given so the system can make a final analysis. A maximum of 265 questions may be taken by RN candidates.

What Happens if a Candidate Fails the NCLEX?

Do not worry if taking the NCLEX results in failing the test. There will be other opportunities to be re-tested. Plus, all candidates failing the test receive a diagnosis profile indicating the extent of knowledge revealed in areas that were satisfactory and in those areas where the level of knowledge was not. Tests can be re-taken as many times as needed, but a 91-day waiting period must be met between testing dates. Check with the local state board of nursing for additional limitations, if applicable