I love going to school at UNE because we get to do our clinical in the greater Portland area. It gives us an opportunity to see patients from all kinds of different backgrounds and demographics. Last semester I got to go all throughout MMC maternity units. One week I got to spend time in the NICU. I got to work with a patient was born at about 28-30 weeks gestation (I don’t exactly remember) and he was born to teen parents. This little baby’s home was about an hour and a half away from the hospital, north of Portland.
This situation came with many challenges, one being that the parents were teenagers and had never cared for an infant before. I worked with a great nurse that day who told me about all the education the nurses will have to give before the infant is discharged. These parents needed to learn how to change a diaper, mix bottles, warm bottles, swaddle, safe sleep, how to set up a car seat, and milestones the parents should be looking for. Another challenge that came up was the distance in which separated the infant and their parents. Due to their age and their lack of access to vehicles, it was hard for them to get to the hospital. Only one parent had their license, but they legally couldn’t drive the other. This added an extra hurdle because these parents would need to find someone else to drive them so they both could go. With them living so far away from MMC, this could be a potential issue of not being able to access the proper care quickly enough if they needed to while at home. The nurse informed me that one of the grandmas was very supportive. She did work a full-time job though, so it made it difficult for her to assist the parents. These parents needed to jump through hurdles for education, transportation, and access.
I think the NICU staff at MMC was doing a great job. The parents didn’t come in the day I was there, but they did call in. My nurse wasn’t quite sure about their financial situation but that could greatly negatively impact their lives. I got to listen to my nurse speak to the parents and I thought she did a great job using simple language to explain to them how their child was doing. The nurse was able to educate them on their condition and provide any education that was prevalent at the time. I think getting a better idea about their home and financial situation could help to paint a better picture for the infant. The infant seemed to have a small support system compromised of his parents and grandmother.
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