Neonatal Resuscitation Programs (NRP) teach vital skills for practitioners caring for newborns as well as for those working in any obstetrical field. While it primarily teaches emergency care skills, it also imparts vital knowledge about overall neonatal health to those who want to improve the daily hands-on care they provide.
It is no secret that those who take part in NRP training are able to give their smallest patients the best possible chance of surviving a life-threatening illness. Here are a few things that you should consider before determining whether this training program is right for you.
NRP training is ideal for a wide range of health care professionals.
You may think that NRP training is only reserved for registered nurses working in the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. However, there are actually a wide variety of professionals who are encouraged to take this course. For example, all types of nurses who care for infants as well as doctors, midwives and respiratory therapists should be encouraged to learn this valuable, life-saving information.
NRP training may be required for certain individuals.
While NRP training is encouraged for some, it is actually required for others. For example, all individuals who work in labor and delivery in most health care organizations must have completed this training course. Auxiliary emergency care staff, including EMTs, may occasionally have this requirement placed on them as well.
NRP training teaches health care providers how to save lives and how to react quickly in an emergency.
It is difficult to think of the health crises that could affect even your youngest patients. However, neonates who are in immediate respiratory distress upon being born require quick care to save their lives. Physicians, nurses and ancillary staff must be poised for action, especially during high-risk deliveries.
The NRP class provides the highest level of training in the field of neonatal care, and every part of it is fully backed up by plenty of research and case studies. Not only will you learn skills and emergency care algorithms during your class, but also you will be prepared through several true-to-life scenarios.
NRP training teaches many of the most important skills for life-saving neonatal care.
Your NRP class will take you through several models of care to give you the knowledge and skills necessary to resuscitate a neonate. This could include warming the infant, providing oxygen, suctioning airways and starting IVs. However, it will also cover more in-depth skills, including:
- providing neonatal CPR
- drawing blood gases
- providing positive pressure ventilation
- assisting with endotracheal tube insertion
- dosing neonatal medications
Your class will be concluded with a neonatal megacode, which will bring all of your newfound skills together.
Not every NRP training session will give you the skills and confidence you need to succeed.
That is why it is vital to choose a course that is approved by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Heart Association. At Project Heartbeat, you will find fully approved NRP certification classes and will be able to get your NRP card, which is valid for two years, at the completion of the two hour program. The format of the class includes both lecture times as well as hands-on skills sessions to ensure that you are confident in caring for even your sickest neonatal patients.
