Information Levels of Neonatal Nursing

Neonatal nurses are specially trained to provide care to healthy newborns and those who are extremely sick and need constant monitoring. Neonatal nurses perform duties such as infant CPR, teaching moms how to care for their babies and monitoring newborns' vitals. They work in hospitals, NICUs and clinics.

Function

• Neonatal nurses are responsible for working with doctors, other nurses and parents to ensure that the best care is provided to newborns for the first 28 days of their lives. Depending on the care level needed, their daily duties may change.

Types

• Neonatal nursing care is divided into three levels. Level I nurses provide care for healthy newborns. Level II neonatal nurses care for sick and moderately premature newborns. Level III nurses care for seriously ill and premature newborns.

Considerations

• Level I neonatal nursing isn't as popular as II and III, since short hospital stays for healthy babies are becoming the norm. To become a neonatal nurse at any level, you should have strong teamwork and communication skills and a desire to work with people. You must have at least a bachelor's degree in nursing and be a registered nurse in your state.