NICU nurses

kmg977@yahoo.com

Hello ladies! I don't believe I've introduced myself on this board yet, but my twins Luke and Emerson were born on December 10th at 28 weeks. They are both doing very well and it sounds like they will be coming home in the next 4 to 6 weeks! Most of the nurses here in the NICU have been great! They are nurturing and great with the babies. They have no idea how much in eases my mind to know they are well taken care of at night, and times during the day that I have to leave for a bit. There is one nurse that just rubs me the wrong way. She seems to come across friendly at first, but then tends to make snarky comments. She also seems to pay no attention to what's going on. She has had the babies about 5 or 6 time now. She still refers to Emerson as a boy (even though when I haven't been around she has changed her diaper, dead give away there). I realize the name can go both ways, but it's not the first time she has had them. She seems to never check on them unless it's during their cares, and told me earlier that I should get a lesson in changing a diaper (followed by a fake laugh) cause our son peed through his diaper, so she needed to change the sheets. She also, which this bothers me the most has a cough, and was coughing straight into their isolettes earlier. I don't want to be "that" mom that complains but I just don't feel comfortable with her taking care of them. Maybe I am overreacting, and I know that not every nurse is going to be my favorite, but idk what to do . Any suggestions? 

kristen218

There were a few nurses in the NICU when my DD was there that also rubbed me the wrong way. I complained to DH about them whenever they were taking care of DD and it just bothered me so much. I think you just have to realize that even if they are not warm and friendly like another nurse, they still have your babies best interest in mind and would never do anything to put them in jeopardy.

 Good luck to you and your babies that they are home soon!

Missa_g

Don't hesitate to ask the In Charge not to have that nurse assigned to you anymore. I have no doubt they are a good medical nurse but their personality is not a good match. We did that with one nurse during our stay and my anxiety was much less after.

MinaE01

You are not overreacting! I know how you feel. I had a nurse that irritated me too. I wanted to speak up to administration, but decided against it because I have her daughter in my class at school. I didn't want to ruffle feathers and know that I would feel uncomfortable being at the NICU when that nurse was there. Plus, I had to deal with her for the rest of the school year anyway.

This nurse ended up being the catalyst for DS's feeding turn around. She pushed to get him fed on demand lesser amounts more frequently so that he could meet his 80% of feedings by mouth quota to get the ng tube removed. It worked like a charm and he took off from there. I credit her with getting our son to come home a few days earlier. My point is that you just never know which nurse may be the best advocate for your babies. On the same token, if it is affecting your comfort level, and you don't like her taking care of your babies, say something. These are your most cherished possessions and you have a say about their care in the NICU. Good luck with your decision. Whatever you decide, your babies will be just fine!

DrRx

There is no reason why you shouldn't speak up and "fire" her from taking care of your babies if things are just not going well.  You can say that you just don't feel comfortable with her taking care of your babies and would like other nurses assigned to your babies.  It'd be one thing if she was just having an off day, but since she is like that every time she has taken care of your babies, why should you put up with it?  You have enough stress that you don't need any additional bs from a nurse. You just have to speak with the Charge Nurse and make sure it's in the chart. 

I agree with BK about not being concerned about the non-interaction during the non-cares times.  I'm sure that she is still aware of the monitors and keeps an eye on them during the times she isn't in the room.  

pathfindermon

Missa_g:

Don't hesitate to ask the In Charge not to have that nurse assigned to you anymore. I have no doubt they are a good medical nurse but their personality is not a good match. We did that with one nurse during our stay and my anxiety was much less after.

This!  We had 2 nurses we asked to not be assigned to our lo.

solemnlyswear

Have you picked primary nurses yet? We picked one and one picked us and they are so great. They aren't always there, sometimes other babies primaries are there instead, but it is great to have them when we do. They get to know DS and us and it makes us more comfortable when we can't be there. Also if you pick primaries you might be less likely to have her as a nurse. I agree with PP about not interacting unless doing cares. Let them sleep and grow . 

If it does make you that uneasy having her just remember you won't be the first person to request not having a certain nurse.

ETA: Congrats on your little ones, wishing you a short NICU stay!

JennZK

I had the same issue with two nurses while we were in the NICU. I got to know the nurses really well and we had the luxury of setting a primary care list. So there was a lot of consistency with who had us. I would mention to other nurses that I knew I could confide in when there was an issue with other nurses. I was also lucky enough that our hospital was close to home and I actually knew several people that worked in the hospital. Also, I used our social worker as an outlet. You are not overreacting and you should definitely speak up. You'll feel much better after you do. 

rslhmg

Missa_g:

Don't hesitate to ask the In Charge not to have that nurse assigned to you anymore. I have no doubt they are a good medical nurse but their personality is not a good match. We did that with one nurse during our stay and my anxiety was much less after.

This. I had a nurse removed from dds care when we were in the most intensive nicu, and while you never know who may be a catalyst for improvement, having an uncomfortable momma isn't good for baby either. DD got called he pretty regular, we named her Rowan which I found out after having her is more common for boys, go figure! Personally, unless the lack of interaction or mixing up gender were having a direct impact on dds care I wouldn't worry about it. The cough on the other hand would send me to the charge nurse on the spot, in my opinion nicu nurses know better and should wear a mask even if they aren't contagious since the parents don't know unless they ask and don't know to ask until they see the coughing.

rjade9

I would absolutely say something! The second day in the NICU I asked a dr to wash his hand before he touched ds because he was touching/rubbing his nose. I also asked if nurses had rings in to wear gloves rings carry sooo much bacteria.

You'd rather say something than have it stressing you out later!