Neonatal Resources, the Podcast: Recent Episodes
Darla, Michelle, and Rebecca
Neonatal Resources, the Podcast is the brainchild Darla, Michelle, and Rebecca, created to share and explore all things NICU. We combine our 40+ combined years of bedside nursing and a passion for our babies with a little humor to dive deep into the neonatal world. Whether you’re a seasoned NICU nurse, a new grad, or a student hoping to join the ranks, we hope you’ll find some great information…and share some laughs.
Guest Tricia is a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner certified in Palliative Care. Darla and Tricia discuss Palliative Care in the Neonatal settings and the differences between Palliative and Hospice/End of Life Care with the Neonatal Population.
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Join Rebecca, Michelle, and Darla on the topic of pulmonary hypoplasia.
Neonatal Resources, the Podcast (nicu-resources.com)
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Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia. This is a long one. Rebecca joins us as we discuss BPD in this episode.
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Michelle and Darla discuss the effects of gestational diabetes on the newborn!
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Darla chats with Author and NICU dad, Adam Wood about his experience in the NICU and his books! Check out Premie Adventures here HOME | Preemie Adventures
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Michelle and Darla discuss congenital viral infections which were once common and are not uncommon.
neonatalresourcespodcast@gmail.com
Neonatal Resources, the Podcast (nicu-resources.com)
A-Maze-ing Careers
The world of work is a maze with twists, turns and dead ends often with no particular...
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Michelle, Darla, and Rebecca discuss congenitally acquired infections, what are the most common TORCH infections, and what have we seen. For more information about us and our podcast visit our website at Neonatal Resources, the Podcast (nicu-resources.com)
A-Maze-ing Careers
The world of work is a maze with twists, turns and dead ends often with no particular...
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
Support the show
Joining Darla to discuss Eat Sleep Console are Lisa a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner in Arizona and Jocelyn a Registered Nurse in Arizona. Lisa and Jocelyn are part of an outreach program which follows substance exposed infants and their families through their abstinence journeys.
Darla gave the reins to Michelle and Rebcca for this episode. Join them while they discuss a head to toe NICU assessment and reporting findings.
Darla gave the reins to Michelle and Rebecca! In this episode you get to hear Michelle and Rebecca talk about how they move through a NICU head to toe assessments! They discuss suggestions on how to perform a NICU assessment and reporting findings.
Fetal circulation and the transition to extrauterine life are extraordinary events. Rebecca, Darla and Michelle talk fetal shunts, fetal blood flow, and the neonates transition to extrauterine life.
Darla and Michele discuss the care of infants who have an omphalocele.
Neonatal Resources, the Podcast (nicu-resources.com)
Join Michelle and Darla as they discuss the care of infants who have gastroschisis.
Neonatal Resources, the Podcast (nicu-resources.com)
Michelle, Darla, and Rebecca talk about their favorite NICU milestones and celebrating holidays in the NICU!!
Neonatal Resources, the Podcast (nicu-resources.com)
Hosted by Darla, this episode features Sarah Ward Author of "Our NICU Journey" and a NICU mom. Sarah discusses her experiences, her motivation behind writing her book, and some hopes for the future of NICU. Join us on our website, where we have shared some amazing resources for NICU families and professionals! Littlewardbooks.com is where you can find more information about Sarah, her family's journey through the NICU, and other amazing resources!
Darla - "This may be my favorite episode!"
In this episode we take a little dive into Transient Tachypnea of Newbron (TTN) and Respiratory Distress Syndrome (RDS). Who is most likely to be affected by each!! Enjoy!!
The last in our gestational age series and a favorite of ours join us while we discuss the tiny babies!!
In this week’s gestational age episode, we talk about late preterm babies…you know, those “not-sure-how-I-am-gonna-act-just-yet” 34-36 weekers (and why they scare Michelle). We explore:
· Betamethasone for mom and how recommendations have changed
· Cold stress and bathing
· How to use your resources (like this podcast!)
· Why these babies are never a “sure thing” as far as their NICU stay is concerned.
Bibliography
Blackman, I. H. (2014). Factors influencing why nursing care is missed. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 24(1-2), 47-56. doi:10.1111/jocn.12688
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020). Infant Health. Retrieved from National Center for Health Statistics: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/infant-health.htm
Chamberlain, J., McCarty, S., Sorce, J., Leesman, B., Schmidt, S., Meyrick, E., . . . Coultas, L. (2019). Impact on delayed newborn bathing on exclusive breastfeeding rates, glucose and temperature stability, and weight loss. Journal of Neonatal Nursing, 74-77.
Data USA. (n.d.). Hospitals: DataUSA. Retrieved from Data USA: Explore, Map, Compare, and DOwnload US Data: https://datausa.io/profile/naics/hospitals#about
Goodman, D., Little , G., & Harrison, W. (2019). The Dartmouth Atlas of Neonatal Intensive Care. Hanover: The Trustees of Dartmouth College.
Ogboenyiya, A., Tubbs-Cooley, H., Miller, E., Johnson, K., & Bakas, T. (2020). Missed nursing care in pediatric and noenatal care settings: an integrative review. American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing, 254-264.
Warren, S., Midodzi, W., Newhook, L., Murphy, P., & Twells, L. (2020). Effects of delayed newborn bathing on breastfeeding, hypothermia, and hypoglycemia. JOGNN, 181-189. doi:10.1016/j.jogn.2019.12.004
Notes:
ACOG – American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Want to see their betamethasone recommendation for this population for yourself? It’s here.
Chorioamnionitis (Chorio) – A bacterial infection of the chorion, amnion, and amniotic fluid. Often indicated by a high maternal fever, tender uterus, or foul-smelling amniotic fluid.
Cold Stress – Hypothermia (axillary temperature of less than 97.5° F) which causes an infant to have increased metabolic demands, often leading them to develop hypoxia, acidosis, and hypoglycemia.
Rationing Care – A term used to describe the situation where the nurse must decide which interventions to perform (and which to withhold) in order to accommodate their patient assignment. Read more about it in (Ogboenyiya, Tubbs-Cooley, Miller, Johnson, & Bakas, 2020)
The second episode in our gestational age series, today we talk about early-term (near-term)/term infants in the NICU. These are babies born between 37 0/7-weeks and 40 6/7-weeks. We talk about:
- What on Earth brings these babies to the NICU?!
- Assessment findings and expectations for uncomplicated newborns
- What findings should make you really suspicious
- How recent practice changes have impacted the care these babies receive (baby-friendly, antibiotic stewardship, etc.)
- What normal newborn care looks like, including discharge testing
We also break down APGAR scoring…though the one thing we didn’t specifically say is that APGAR scores are determined at one minute of life, 5 minutes of life. Additional APGAR scores are given every 5 minutes for 20 minutes or until a score of 7 or better is achieved.
As promised, a better look at the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative.
Bibliography
Health Resources and Services Administration. (2022, March). Critical congenital heart disease. Retrieved from Health Resources and Services Administration: newborn screening: https://newbornscreening.hrsa.gov/conditions/critical-congenital-heart-disease
Korang, S. K., Safi, S., Gluud, C., Lausten-Thomsen, U., & Jakobsen, J. C. (2019). Antibiotic regimens for neonatal sepsis - a protocol for a systematic review with meta-analysis. Systematic Reviews, 8, Article number: 306. doi:10.1186/s13643-019-1207-1
Martin, M. G., Ewer, M. A., Gaviglio, M. L., Horn, R. E., Saarinen, M. A., Sontag, P. M., . . . Oster, M. M. (2020). Updated strategies for pulse oximetry screening for critical congenital heart disease. Pediatrics, e20191650. doi:10.1542/peds.2019-1650
National Organization for Rare Diseases, Inc. (2007). Aplasia cutis congenita. Retrieved from NORD Rare Diseases Database: https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/aplasia-cutis-congenita/
Neonatal early‐onset sepsis calculator recommended significantly less empiric antibiotic treatment than national guidelines. (2020, Dec). Acta Paediatrica, 2549-2551.
Ramasethu, J., & Kawakita, T. (2017, October). Antibiotic stewardship in perinatal and neonatal care. Seminars in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine, 278-283. doi:10.1016/j.siny.2017.07.001
For definitions of terms used, visit Early-Term/Term Babies — Neonatal Resources, the Podcast (nicu-resources.com) and view our notes.
Episode Description:
The first in a series of episodes looking at gestational age in the neonatal population. In this episode, we look at late-term and post-term babies, defined as 41+0/7-weeks or greater. Always the dyad expert, (and the only one of us not intimidated by these babies,) Darla helps us break down:
- What a late-term/post-term pregnancy looks like
- Risks for both mom and baby
- Assessment findings and expectations
- Developmental care for this gestational age group
We also get into the psychosocial implications for late-term/post-term deliveries that end up in a NICU stay as well as some of the “sticky bits” like, how much can we trust the dates we are being told and what does it mean for parents to have access to so much information?
Bibliography
Bannour, L., Bannour, R., Chahed, S., & Khairi, H. (2021). Prolonged pregnancy, incidence andmorbidity....14th European Public Health Conference (Virtual), Public health features in a changing world, November 10-12, 2021. European Journal of Public Health, Supplement, iii538-iii539.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020). Infant Health. Retrieved from National Center for Health Statistics: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/infant-health.htm
Goodman, D., Little , G., & Harrison, W. (2019). The Dartmouth Atlas of Neonatal Intensive Care. Hanover: The Trustees of Dartmouth College.
Kliegman MD, R. M., St. Geme MD, J. W., Blum MD, N. J., Shah MD, M. S., Tasker, M. M., & Wilson MD, M. K. (2020). Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics, Twenty-First Edition. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier.
Latif, S., & Aiken, C. (2021). Prolonged Pregnancy. Obstetrics, Gynaecology & Reproductive Medicine, 170-174.
Majola, L., Budhram, S., Govender, V., Naidoo, M., Godlwana, Z., Lombard, C., & Moodley, D. (2021). Reliability of last menstrual period recall, an early ultrasound and a Smartphone App in predicting date of delivery and classification of preterm and postterm births. BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth, 1-9.
Notes:
AGA (Average for gestational age) - A baby who falls between the 10th and 90th percentile on the growth chart
Cooling - A term used to describe therapeutic hypothermia, a process which brings the baby’s core temperature down, allowing the brain a chance to heal from hypoxic/ischemic injury
Dubowitz - A scoring tool used at delivery to estimate the baby’s gestational age.
EEG (Electroencephalograph) - A test which uses electrodes to measure electric activity in the brain
Growth Chart - A tool used to determine a baby’s weight, head circumference, and length in relation to other babies of the same age and gestation. There are several different growth charts, all of which may vary slightly, but your facility will have one that they use for their standard, allowing for an accurate assessment of growth over time.
IUGR (Intrauterine Growth Restriction) - A baby who measures below the 4th percentile on the growth chart
LGA (Large for Gestation) - A baby that measures above the 90th percentile on the growth chart
SGA (Small for Gestation) - A baby that measures between the 4th and 10th percentile on the growth chart.
Nursing school prepares you for caring for patients in the best way possible...unless you decide to work in the NICU! The pediatric knowledge-base focuses on newborn through adolescence and maternity is geared towards conception to delivery. So what does that mean for those of us who choose to dedicate our careers to the span in-between?
In this episode, we talk about what it's like to embark on a nursing career in the NICU. From the struggle to reframe everything you thought you knew to navigating the often-difficult politics, join us for a discussion of the semester that nursing school forgot.
Thanks for joining us for our pilot episode of Neonatal Resources, the Podcast! We are so excited to get to share with you our passion for this incredible population. We hope that, as the show grows, we can grow together and share practices, insights, and stories. We are nurses, but this isn't limited to nursing. This podcast is aimed at anyone practicing in, or hoping to practice in, the neonatal world.
In this episode, you'll get to hear a little about each of us, what brought us to the NICU, and what keeps us invested. Each of us, Darla, Michelle, and I (Rebecca - it'll usually be this nerdy girl who writes these things!) has a different background and a different approach. For me, our differences have helped me grow, taught me to question myself, and improved my practice. In such a specialized environment, it can be difficult to find the kind of support and encouragement that is required to really flourish in your practice. We hope you'll find some of that here.
What bonds us is a genuine love for what we do. I'm so lucky (can't speak for Darla and Michelle) to have found my life-calling and two of my very best friends in the same place! We are truly grateful to get to share that love and comradery with you and hope that you'll share with us as well. The BIG DREAM for us is to use this platform as a way to grow a community of NICU specialists who want to collaborate and ultimately make the care we provide these vulnerable patients the best it can be.