M3-- WEEK NINETEEN

I spent last week in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) at UNMC. This is where babies who are born too early spend their first few days/weeks/months of life.

(picture from google images)

If you haven't been in a NICU before, it's an amazing place. These kiddos are (unfortunately) often only a few pounds and frequently need serious help with breathing and feeding. It is incredible how much medicine can do to help them survive! The majority of our day-to-day care is spent adjusting ventilator settings, monitoring weight change closely, and reworking their feeds & fluids.

(picture from google images)

I would round on "my patients" at 0600 and then check in with the residents on service to see if I guessed the plan for the day correctly. We had "sit down rounds" in a conference room where we would present each patient to the team (neonatologist, residents, NPs/PAs, pharmacist, nutritionist, social work & nurses). By then it would be time for lunch (we've kept with the premade salads - we love them!). The afternoons were much less scheduled and we were often keeping busy while we waited to be called to labor and delivery. The NICU team is called to resuscitations after deliveries of any kiddos that are preterm or have been identified to have risk factors for trouble after delivery (like a heart problem detected on ultrasound or a congenital abnormality).

One of the best parts of this past week was that I was also working with a 4th year student who is going into pediatrics. He clued me into a few residency programs that he really liked from interviews as well as gave me advice for planning my 4th year. It's comforting to talk this process through with someone who knows a little more about it than you do!

As you know, T and I always try to sneak in some fun outside of work each week. We snuck in a walk around Lauritzen Gardens, a movie night, and dinner with friends. Monday night T offered to babysit our friends' little one so they could go out for a birthday dinner. We got to hang with this sweet little one:

This next week I am back to Children's Hospital! It's a lot of hustle and bustle to keep rotating each week.. but I am learning a lot!

Have a great week!

xo,
Krista