NICU Staff

A Newborn Intensive Care Unit is an extremely busy place and there are many professionals working together to provide care for your baby.

To help get you acquainted, here are some of the staff members you're likely to meet during your baby’s stay in the NICU.

Neonatologist: A specialist doctor who has had advanced and specialised training in newborn intensive care. There may be several neonatologists in the NICU and they are responsible for the overall medical management of the babies. They work in conjunction with many staff members to form the neonatal team.

Neonatal Fellow: A paediatrician who is currently getting the specialised training that is required to become a neonatologist.

Registrar: A qualified doctor learning the specialty of neonatology. In the NICU, they may be from paediatrics, intensive care or anaesthetics. They work a roster, so you may meet different registrars on different days or nights. They are responsible for ensuring the day to day review of your baby occurs and is discussed with the team. They are supervised and supported always by a fellow and/or consultant neonatologist

Resident: A junior doctor who is receiving training to be a paediatrician, general practitioner or specialist.
Paediatrician: Babies who need intensive care will start off with a neonatologist and may transfer to a paediatrician when they go home. Usually the paediatrician will continue to see babies after they have gone home from hospital. Many neonatologists will follow certain babies til 1 year of age or beyond.

Neonatal Nurse Practitioner: A registered nurse who has specialised training in newborn intensive care. They work under the direction of the neonatologist and nursing unit manager and work to provide holistic care for your baby with a role similar to a registrar with advanced nursing skills as well

Nurse Unit Manager (NUM): Is the senior nurse that takes care of the management of staff and the babies throughout their shift.

Clinical Nurse Specialist: A senior nurse that will often be in charge on certain shifts. They have a part clinical and part managerial responsibility

Registered Nurse: These nurses will most frequently look after your baby, and teach you to care for him/her. They work as a team and are of different levels of training and experience.

Nurse Educators/Clinical Nurse Educators: Provide an educational service for all nursing staff on the unit as well as those that are planning a career in nursing and may be rotating from university for a placement in the NICU.

Clinical Nurse Consultant (CNC): Specialists in the care provided in the NICU. In the unit, the CNC works with clinicians to develop and improve service standards. They are also widely involved in policy development, safety and quality and have a regional role for neonatal care beyond the NICU where you bay is being cared for

Lactation Consultants: They offer support and help to resolve breastfeeding or lactation problems such as; low/over supply of milk, expressing, attachment issues, nipple trauma, prematurity.

Clinic Research and Audit Nurse: Provides support regarding data collection and analysis and collects important information on babies’ in the NICU. The provision of this information allows consistent practice across all units and allows continual practice improvement

Social Worker: Helps families with the emotional aspects of having a premature or sick newborn. They are also able to assist with practical issues such as outside support resources and health interpreter services. They routinely make contact with families who have a baby in the NICU. If you wish to see the social worker, please ask your nurse to contact them, they are also available after hours and weekends if the need arises.

Dietician: A person with special training in nutrition. They provide nutritional support and advice in the NICU and make sure your baby is getting all the nutrients they need to grow healthy and strong.

Occupational Therapist: A person with special training in baby development and how movement problems may affect milestones. Their role can include evaluating your baby’s readiness for stimulation and social interaction; providing developmental assessments, giving education and recommendations to parents/carers on positioning for play, feeding, sleeping and bathing. You may encounter this person either in the NICU or in a follow-up clinic.

Physiotherapist: A person with special training in assessing and helping muscle tone and movement problems, bone problems and chest care. You may encounter this person either in the NICU or in a follow-up clinic.

Speech Therapist: A person with special training in speech, language, swallowing and feeding. They often work within the NICU on feeding problems like sucking and swallowing.

Hearing Screener: Will test your baby’s hearing before going home.

Radiographers: A person who take x-rays of your baby and may do ultrasound examinations and interpret these if required.

Administrative Staff: This team of professionals includes Ward Clerks and Secretaries; they ensure the smooth running of the administrative side of NICU.

Hospital Chaplain: A hospital based religious support person. A variety of personnel attend from many denominations.

“Housekeeping” Staff: Keep the NICU clean and tidy for the benefit of your baby.