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Neonatal Nurse Practitioner

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Neonatal Nurse Practitioner A baby was just born at 26 weeks gestation. Just over half the normal 40 weeks a baby should stay inside the mother. The baby is immediately whisked away and taken to be evaluated and prepared for a long journey ahead. Ever since I could remember babies and the nursery at the hospital have fascinated me. Whenever we would go visit a friend who had a baby, I would find myself peaking over the windows into the nursery. I have known for a while that working in the neonatal intensive care unit is what I want to pursue. Recently I have been looking into nurse practitioners and furthering my education beyond my BSN. Being able to care for these infants in the most critical stages of their life, and being able to provide them the support they need to survive outside the womb seems so satisfying . Neonatal nurse practitioners have years of education, deep history, detailed job description, high demands and some legal issues. Basic Information Education Requirements A n eonatal nurse practitioner is a nurse practitioner that specializes in caring for neonates. Nurse practitioners are in the broad category of advanced practice registered nurses, or APRN’s. In order to become a neonatal nurse practitioner, one must first be a licensed registered nurse and have a BSN. Many programs also require nurses to have two years of clinical experience before starting the program to become a nurse practitioner (United States, 2014). To become a neonatal

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