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The NICU fellowship
allows nurses to work in a broad spectrum of patient care situations,
while enhancing their nursing skills under the guidance of expert mentors.
Neonatal Intensive
Care Fellowship
The Neonatal Intensive Care Fellowship Program at St. John’s Mercy
Medical Center is committed to the development of critical care concepts
and skill required of the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) nurse. This
is a shared commitment of the participant, the nurse clinician, the manager
and the preceptors.
St. John’s Mercy
Medical Center’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is a Level III nursery
providing premature or critically ill babies special care. As the only
Level III NICU in St. Louis County, St. John’s Mercy’s NICU
provides extensive services for newborns, with an average daily census
of 46. Our health care team consists of seven neonatologists, 20 neonatal
nurse practitioners and 150 staff members, including neonatal nurses and
respiratory therapists. Our nurses also staff a helicopter transport team
that travels with Air Rescue Consortium of Hospitals (ARCH).
 Our
nursery utilizes advanced technology which allows us to provide care for
infants with a variety of medical problems, from full-term babies with
surgical or medical issues to acutely critical premature infants, to babies
who transition poorly through the extrauterine period.
The NICU is also involved
in the Vermont-Oxford Consortium, a national organization of NICUs working
toward care improvement in the nation’s NICUs. Through methods we
have employed at St. John’s Mercy, the NICU has decreased chronic
lung disease in our premature infant population by 10 percent during the
past year.
Fellowship Content
The NICU fellowship consists of nine didactic days, which include self-study
modules, lectures by NICU nurses and neonatologists, equipment demonstrations,
a medication test, and a final review test. Each student will receive
three NICU orientation manuals, for class and resource use.
This classroom period
includes instruction in:
- the premature infant
- family issues
- nursing skills,
including suctioning and IVs
- nutrition
- respiratory disease
- cardiovascular
disease
- surgical interventions
- developmental care
- genetics and congenital
anomalies.
Clinical orientation
is 10 to 12 weeks with a preceptor. The clinical practicum will guide
the participant through three levels of infant care: infants preparing
for discharge, intermediate infants and acute care infants. The acute
infant care level includes micro-preemies, surgical infants, respiratory
problems, and multiples, to name a few. Through this program, the speakers
also address interaction with families, and how to assist parents in overcoming
the fear and grief of the NICU experience. The fellowship nurses are also
prepared for the teaching role the NICU nurse takes on as he or she helps
parents learn how to care for their premature or sick baby.
Presenters and
Preceptors
A variety of speakers will present during the program including neonatologists
and sub specialists, neonatal nurse practitioners, staff nurses, and the
clinical educators.
 Candidates
A NICU nurse fellowship candidate should be compassionate, possess critical
thinking skills, and be able to work with autonomy as part of a multidisciplinary
team.
Applicants must possess
a valid nursing license in the State of Missouri or have recently graduated
from an accredited nursing school with eligibility to take the Missouri
State Boards within 90 days of graduation. Requirements for the fellowship
also include the candidate be certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation,
and be certified in neonatal resuscitation six months after orientation.
The selection process for this fellowship includes a panel interview.
Contact Information
Interested candidates should contact Mary Bekebrede, the NICU Fellowship
Coordinator, at 314-251-6336. Or, click here to contact
the coordinator by e-mail.
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