One of the most exciting moments for a parent of a NICU baby is when you can start feeding the baby from the bottle. Most are not able to do the breast feeding due to the difficulty latching on, but what a joy to feed your baby even if by bottle whether it is your breast milk or specialized formula.  There are different opinions in the medical community around feeding readiness.    My passion for the neonatal intensive care unit arose from having a premature infant myself.  My son was given breast milk initially via NG Tube until he was ready to try a bottle.  Initially the bottle feeding was started once per day and increased and they would leave the bottle feeding for when the parents were there to feed the baby to create that bonding experience.  One day  I arrived at the NICU on a weekend ready to spend the entire day with my son.  I was excited to feed him several times per day, but I was greeted by the shift nurse telling me that I was doing it wrong.  She took over the feeding entirely and when the rest of the feedings occurred that day, she took over stating that I was making the baby aspirate due to my inexperience.  I was only allowed to hold him.  When change of shift occurred she said okay time to go, I stated that we were in a private room and the nurses close the door so that we do not have to leave during change of shift.  We were in a private room because at one point the baby had developed a hospital borne infection called serratia and would remain in a private room until discharge.   Staying in the room was an arrangement that I made with upper management due to the fact that I worked full-time as did my husband and we did not have much visit time with him during the week.  She proceeded about her business and ripped the baby right out of my arms.

 

I cried for days until Monday came and I made a complaint to my head nurse who assured me that this was documented in my chart right on the front that I was allowed to stay whenever I needed to. She showed me the chart and stated that she would speak to the nurse about her abruptness.  The weekend nurse apologized to us a few days later, but by then my feelings were already crushed.   It was later discovered that the baby was aspirating even when he was fed via g-tube it had nothing to do with how I was holding or feeding him.  It was inevitable.  In the end, it was decided that the baby would have a Mickey G-tube inserted surgically for feedings to expedite his discharge to home.

As nursing professionals we need to be sensitive to the needs of our patients and their families.  We should always read the chart prior to walking in the baby’s room and talking with the family to see if there are any new changes since last you saw the baby. How could the nurse that  was in charge of my baby rip him right  out of my hands and ask us to leave.? When you look at how he was being fed here vs those those nurses that truly cared about bonding .

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These nurses were Kaleb’s primary day and night nurses…sheer joy to watch nurses caring about their patients….

 

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Written by Rosie Moore, RN, BSN, LNC

Published by Rosie's Nurse corner

Rosie is an author of children and adult books. Her career paths have led her through being a master wedding and event planner, travel agent, nurse, mother, and founder of the non-profit organization The Gift of Life. There’s nothing more inspiring than a story that touches the heart and grants insight into deeper truths and Rosie presents this through her collection of impactful works. Rosie authored her first book, A Story of Faith, a book where Rosie shares her struggles, triumphs, and takeaways about infertility and having a child born prematurely. Her lessons for children can be seen in the children’s books she has authored. These stories help children find comfort and confidence in fear, loneliness, and self-doubt. A percentage of the proceeds from all of Rosie Moore’s books go to support The Gift of Life, an organization that supports and empowers the parents and families of premature babies. Rosie came from a background of being a legal nurse, disease management nurse, and worker’s comp case manager, but after many years in corporate America, she decided that her love of people was more important. She pursued her Doctorate of Nurse Practice so that she can develop a transition program for parents of premature babies while their baby was in the neonatal intensive care unit. This program will help to decrease the stress level that the parents face and readmissions to the hospitals due to complications of prematurity. Rosie is passionate about The Gift of Life because she is the parent of a premature baby born at 1lb. 10 oz. and 27 weeks, a true miracle. She went through all the struggles that each parent who has a baby born early faces. She understands the struggle and although she can’t stop prematurity and the feelings that go along with it, she can provide support through her organization. She pursued a career as a doula which led her to open Windermere Baby and Family Wellness Center, offering the services of labor and postpartum doulas, lactation specialists, birth education classes, infant CPR, and maternity concierge services while a mother is on bed rest. The mission of Windermere Baby and Family Wellness Center is to give families a different approach to having babies and raising families in a holistic and evidence-based manner. Rosie is the reigning Mrs. Michigan International. She uses her title and crown to promote The Gift of Life in the hopes of reaching a diverse larger audience to support parents of premature babies and raise awareness about preterm birth and the effects of it. Rosie Moore Website: http://rosiemoore27.com/

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