My Mission

Helping tiny babies survive and thrive

As a NICU nurse, I work to help the tiniest humans have a chance at a full life. Babies who arrive too early or are sick may spend time in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) where I work. My role is to be the steady medical professional who helps them and their parents until they can go home.

NICUs have seen much progress. 50 years ago, many babies born early had no chance. Now, when I was pregnant with my own baby girl, by 28 weeks I knew with good NICU care she would likely be just fine, and by 32 weeks, we were home free. Technology and practical improvements helped increase survival and thriving. For example, we learned how oxygen impacts eye health, and are now better able to adjust and measure oxygen to prevent blindness even in very premature babies. Or take feeding: it used to be that we’d feed on a strict 3-hour schedule — but now, increasingly, as a nurse I learn the baby’s signals and adjust feeding schedules, just like mom and dad would do at home.

I love being a NICU nurse. We’re known to be kind, gentle nurses who pay attention to tiny details. We’re working at the beginning of life, at a joyful moment, healing babies and supporting parents during a challenging time. I get to be present during birth, as the medical professional for the baby. I celebrate milestones with the parents, like a baby that goes from an invasive ventilator to a CPAP machine to oxygen and finally breathes on her own and can go home.

My work blends science and art: from leading newborn resuscitations to coaching new parents who are terrified and brave at the same time on how to handle their tiny baby. The mission is simple and huge: give every newborn, no matter how small, a safe start. Then send them home to a full life.

My Path

STEM kid with vet aspirations turned NICU nurse

I didn’t start out wanting to be a nurse. I like science, and was a biology major with the goal of becoming a vet. But during my first semester in college, I interviewed a nursing professor and realized I was in the wrong place. Her words stuck with me: “Nursing is balancing the art of patient care with the science of medicine.” After I graduated with a degree in Public Health, I did another 15 months of school to get a nursing degree.

I didn’t know what type of nurse I wanted to be. But fortunately, nursing allows you to switch pretty easily. I tried to get a labor & delivery practicum, but ended up in the NICU, and loved it. My first job was in a cardiac ICU where I learned many nursing skills, but after a few years I switched over to the NICU.

One huge benefit of a nursing career is that you start early. If you go straight into nursing, you can start working at 22. I was 24 with my second degree. Still, I had several years of work experience before I took time off recently to start my own family, while still in my 20s. When I go back to work, I’ll have a lot of flexibility: I can work weekends, or night shifts so my husband and I can split care of our daughter, or just work two days a week. There are few fulfilling careers that are as compatible with having a family!