Advanced Practice in Neonatal Nursing

Abstract

The participation of advanced practice registered nurses in neonatal care continues to be accepted and supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Recognized categories of advanced practice neonatal nursing are the neonatal clinical nurse specialist and the neonatal nurse practitioner.

Clinical data needs in the neonatal intensive care unit electronic medical record

“…The results of these comparisons have clinical practicality and can offer insights into the appropriate development of HITs best suited to address differing clinical needs. NP/PRs are often responsible for most pre-rounding and rounding duties and are the primary care provider of NICU patients throughout a day [ 25 – 27 ]. As a result, providers in this role have a need for access to large amounts of data items, without much discrimination of importance, in order to collect all the necessary information for dissemination in multidisciplinary patient rounds and in the clinical note.…”

Neonatal Care Provider Tasks in the NICU and Delivery Room

“…In the NICU, NNPs 3,6,7 and specially trained neonatal PAs [14][15][16] work with neonatologists to provide care around the clock, as recommended by the AAP. 4 The first expanded roles for neonatal nurses were developed in the early 1970s to meet the needs of academic level III NICUs, for neonatal transport, and in level II special care nurseries as a first responder. 17 Some of the first NNPs, from Utah and Colorado, developed their own curriculum, then taught others, 17 During the early 1970s, when neonatology became a pediatric subspecialty and regionalization of neonatal care was organized, the earliest expanded neonatal nurse roles emerged, as nurses were trained to provide advanced assessment and procedural skills for transport and stabilization.…”

“…[1][2][3] Members of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Committee on Fetus and Newborn have identified that neonatologists will need to collaborate with a variety of professionals, including neonatal nurse practitioners (NNPs) and neonatal physician assistants (PAs), to meet the needs of the NICU population, as well as patients receiving level I and II care. [4][5][6][7] Despite more than a century of evidence regarding best care practices for sick newborns, 8 no recent publications exist about how to approach the organization of tasks involved in that care. There are structures in place to teach physicians and neonatal advanced practice providers (APPs) the criticalthinking and procedural skills required to provide care, but the performance of daily tasks is learned, experientially.…”

“…Changes in the pediatric medicine residency practice model have created demand for additional care providers for sick and premature newborns 1–3. Members of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Committee on Fetus and Newborn have identified that neonatologists will need to collaborate with a variety of professionals, including neonatal nurse practitioners (NNPs) and neonatal physician assistants (PAs), to meet the needs of the NICU population, as well as patients receiving level I and II care 4–7…”

Master’s programs in advanced nursing practice: new strategies to enhance course design for subspecialty training in neonatology and pediatrics

“…The advanced neonatal nurse practitioner (ANNP) role was first developed in the 1980s, primarily to provide care for critically ill infants in an intensive care setting. The role has been formally endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics 3. This included recognition of the training and credentialing process, and acknowledged the requirement for completion of a master’s-level education program in the neonatal nursing specialty.…”