Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Programs

Top Online Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Degrees

Neonatal nurses care for newborn babies and their mothers. To become a neonatal nurse practitioner, an MSN degree and license as a registered nurse is required. Each of the following schools offers at least one MSN degree.

MS in Nursing	Loyola University of New Orleans -- The Loyola University of New Orleans MS in nursing program has been educating nurses for more than 30 years. Loyola is passionate about inferring knowledge to the next generation of nursing leaders. With a dynamic curriculum, students are engaged in learning advanced topics in the nurses sciences. If you are participating in an employer-sponsored tuition reimbursement program, you may defer up to 90 percent of tuition and fees until the end of the semester.
MS in Nursing	Benedictine University -- The Master of Science degree in Nursing at Benedictine University is an unique online program that allows students to have the opportunity to develop custom tailored areas of focus. The program provides core courses that will build skills necessary to lead, educate, and administer in health care as well as provide the flexibility to concentrate on the areas that students are passionate about.
Accelerated RN to MSN Accel MSN: Adult Health Accel MSN: Education	South University -- The South University MSN program trains registered nurses to the next level of nursing science. The program format allows nurses to pursue their education goals while continuing their career. The curriculum is designed to develop clinical teaching skills and modern research in the nursing field.
MSN: Clinical Nursing MSN: Family Nursing MSN: Nurse Midwifery MSN: Women's Health More MSN Degrees...	University of Cincinnati -- At the University of Cincinnati, students in the Nursing College may choose from a variety of advanced nursing programs. For example, the MSN in women's health reviews female medical conditions. The nurse administration, adult nursing, nurse midwifery, and family nursing programs teach the skills to apply treatment in these specific nursing fields.
MSN: Education MSN: Informatics MSN/MBA Dual Degree MSN/MHA Dual Degree	University of Phoenix -- Accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, the University of Phoenix College of Nursing offers several Master's programs in nursing, including the MSN: Nursing Education and MSN: Nursing Informatics. These degree programs enhance the knowledge of registered nurses and allow for advanced training opportunities.
MSN: Acute Care	Liberty University -- The MSN Acute Care degree from Liberty University provides for Registered Nurses to prepare for practice as clinical nurse specialists with concentrations in acute care. The nursing curriculum will place an emphasis on clinical practice and the real world application of nursing didactics.
RN to MSN MSN: Education MSN: Leadership	Gonzaga University -- The RN to MSN, MSN Nurse Education, and MSN Nurse Leadership degrees from the award winning Gonzaga University provides the opportunity for nurses to take their professional skills to the next level. The curriculum provides ground-breaking theory education in the field for today's relevant research and development.
RN to MSN MSN: Education MSN: Informatics MSN: Leadership	Walden University -- Walden University's online nursing programs offer several degrees at the master's level. These options include the RN to MSN, MSN - Informatics, MSN - Education, MSN - Leadership. All of these programs are geared towards empowering students to become agents of change in the healthcare field.
MSN: Adult Acute Care MSN: Adult Psych Care MSN: Clinical Trials MSN: Nurse Leadership	Drexel University -- Drexel University offers a number of Master's in Nursing programs. Ranging from adult acute care, to adult psychiatric care and nursing leadership, these programs are taught by a dedicated faculty that understands the issues of the healthcare industry today.
MSN: Administration MSN: Education	Kaplan University -- The Kaplan University Master of Science in Nursing programs in nurse administration and nurse education features a curriculum that is designed to allow for the exploration of the dynamic healthcare nursing environment. Courses include Advanced Nursing Roles, Theoretical Foundations of Advanced Nursing, and Health Promotion and Disease Prevention in a Diverse Community.
MSN: Education MSN: Education Bridge	Capella University -- The MSN in Nurse Education program is offered at Capella University. As the demand for skilled nurses grows every day, the need for excellent nurse educators has also increased. Capella University has risen to the call by providing curriculum that will teach students advanced knowledge of nursing theory and practice. This program will prepare you for positions in higher education institutions, health care organization, and the military.
MSN: Clinical Leadership	St. Xavier University -- St. Xavier's mission is to serve the students they teach. St. Xavier University offers a variety of graduate level nursing programs. In particular, its MSN in Clinical Leadership is a master's level program that will prepare you for leadership roles throughout the healthcare system.
MSN: Education MSN: Leadership MSN/MBA: Leadership	Grand Canyon University -- The MSN - Nurse Education, MSN - Nurse Leadership, and MSN/MBA - Leadership degree programs from Grand Canyon University all are designed to provide current nurses with the tools they need to become leaders in their field. The curriculum features classes that both educate and engage.
MSN: Education	Graceland University -- With an outstanding faculty and dynamic curriculum, the Graceland University MSN Nurse Education program is fast becoming the go-to destination for nurses interested in teaching. The curriculum prepares nurses to enter the classroom and provide their expertise to the next generation of nurses.
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Explanation of Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Programs

Neonatal nurse practitioners (NNP) work in nursing departments that care for newborn infants up to 28 days after birth. You can acquire a neonatal nurse practitioner certification through a Masters of Science in nursing degree or a Doctor of Nursing Practitioner degree that has a specialization program in neonatal nursing care. All institutions have different entry-level requirements for neonatal nurse practitioner programs. Usually neonatal nurses are registered nurses (RNs), and therefore must already have at least an Associate of Science in nursing (ASN), or a Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) degree. Institutions often require a person to have experience working as a certified RN in the adult-health or medical/surgical nursing before applying to these programs. The National Association of Neonatal Nurses recommends two years’ experience working in a NICU before taking graduate level classes. The degree designation for nurse practitioners who have earned their Nursing Board Certification from the National Certification Corporation is called an NNP-BC.

As an NNP you will care for pre-term and full-term infants who are critically ill, growing and have chronic conditions. Through a neonatal nurse practitioner program you’ll become an expert in neonatal care, managing the care of newborns and infants, while working with parents and families during times of stress. You will work both independently and in collaboration with a health care team in acute and non-acute settings to assess, diagnose, manage and evaluate the health care needs of infants and neonates. Neonatal nurses must have certification as a neonatal resuscitation provider.

In addition to a nurses’ general knowledge, neonatal intensive care nurses endure intensive didactic and clinical orientation so they can provide highly specialized care for critical infant patients. Neonatal nurse areas of expertise include the administration of high-risk medications, management of high-acuity patients requiring ventilator support, surgical care, resuscitation, and advanced interventions such as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation or hypothermia therapy for neonatal encephalopathy procedures. Training is also provided in chronic-care management or lower acuity cares associated with premature infants such as feeding intolerance, phototherapy, or administering antibiotics. NICU RNs undergo annual skills tests and are subject to additional training to maintain contemporary practice.

Curriculum Plan for Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Programs

Curriculum depends upon the type of school’s program that you’re involved in. Online neonatal nurse practitioner programs are usually for advanced level nurses who have already completed their BSN or MSN in nursing. If a program does allow ASN’s to participate, then they usually require ASN’s to do two semester of RN pre-specialty before their NNP courses. If a student has completed their BSN-RN degree then they typically need to finish three semesters for an NNP program. If a student comes from a previous master’s program then the length and courses will be determined by individual portfolio cases. NNP program coursework from any program must satisfy the requirements from the National Association of Neonatal Nurses (NANN), and the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF).

Through coursework, NNPs are trained to give care, provide treatment, order X-rays of broken bones and prescribe medications to children, in addition to being trained to be culturally sensitive and to work with individual families in times of crisis. Upon graduating you will be eligible to sit for national Neonatal Nurse Practitioner certification examination offered by the National Certification Corporation for the Obstetric, Gynecologic and Neonatal Nursing Specialties (NCC).

Typical courses offered in a neonatal nurse practitioner program may include:

• Introduction to Advanced Practice Neonatal Nursing Skills
• Servant Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice
• Healthcare System and Management
• Advanced Neonatal Health Assessment and Diagnostics
• Development and Neonatal Physiology
• Theoretical Foundations of Neonatal Care
• Neonatal Pathophysiology and Management
• Role within U.S. Healthcare Delivery System
• Neonatal Pharmacotherapeutics
• Neonatal Practicum
• Scientific Underpinnings for Advanced Nursing Practice
• Neonatal Preceptorship
• Conceptualization and Integration of Evidence for APN

A few core concepts that you’ll learn in these courses will include:

• Concepts of stewardship, servant leadership and clinical ethics to culturally diverse clients (individuals, families, organizations and global society)
• Greater depth of understanding of developmental physiology of the fetus and neonate—principles of growth and development, physiologic maturation of organ systems, birth physiology, and transition to extrauterine life through early infancy, adaptation to physiologic stress and alterations from normal
• In-depth understanding of pharmacotherapeutics of newborns and infants—principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics when applied to newborn/infant physiology, special considerations of drug therapy in the newborn/infant, advanced nursing management of selected newborn/infant therapeutics, issues associated with drug therapy in the neonatal intensive care unit, and evaluation of experimental therapies
• Knowledge and skills necessary to perform comprehensive assessments and interpretation of diagnostic data on newborns, infants, and their families—systematic data collection, diagnostic reasoning, clinical problem solving for a variety of newborns and infants, perinatal assessment, fetal assessment, gestational age assessment, neurobehavioral and developmental assessments, physical exam of newborns and infants, and the use of diagnostics such as laboratory studies, radiographs, and instrumentation/monitoring devices
• Clinical experience in assessing the health care needs of healthy and at-risk newborns/infants and their families—assessment and evaluation of care to families with at-risk factors during all phases of the child bearing process (antenatal, intrapartum, post-partum, and neonatal periods) through history taking, physical examinations and diagnostic interpretation on a variety of newborns and infants
• Theoretical and practical knowledge of pathophysiology as it applies to the care of newborns and infants with acute and/or chronic illness or at risk for health problems from a high risk pregnancy—consequences of the intensive care environment and abnormal physiology on the normal development of the fetus, newborn and infant
• Theoretical and practical knowledge needed for advanced practice neonatal nurses (APNN) to manage the health care needs of culturally diverse newborns/infants in neonatal intensive care units (NICU)—focusing on stabilization, management and evaluation of high-risk newborns/infants and their families

Work Environment for Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Graduates

There are three different levels that a neonatal nurse practitioner can work in within a neonatal nursery. These levels are:

• Level I – Newborn Nursery: This level consists of caring for newborns. Healthy babies typically share a room with their mother; therefore the level 1 is intended for newborns that need special care.
• Level II – Intermediate Care Nursery: This level provides intermediate or special care for premature or ill newborns. Infants at this level may need special therapy from the nursing staff, or just may need to spend more time in the hospital before being discharged.
• Level III – Neonatal Intensive Care Nursery: This level is typically the neonatal intensive-care unit (NICU), which treats newborns who can’t be treated in the other levels and who are in need of high technology to survive. This is usually the area that most neonatal nurse practitioners work in, as they comprise over 90% of the NICU staff.

The functions that a neonatal nurse may need to perform on the field include:

• Obtain health histories
• Perform comprehensive physical and gestational age assessments
• Collaborate with the Neonatologist regarding plan of care
• Provide staff education
• Stabilize and transport ill infants to Level III nurseries via both ground and air transport
• Assist with obtaining operative/procedure consents
• Write orders
• Incorporate developmental care in patient care giving
• Promote family centered care and healthy infant-parent attachment
• Participate in patient rounds
• Attend morbidity and mortality rounds and medical conferences within the institution
• Perform procedures necessary to aid in identifying a diagnosis
• Care for a caseload of patients

External Links about Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Programs:

• Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses: This is a nonprofit membership organization that promotes the health of women and newborns. AWHONN’s mission is to improve and promote the health of women and newborns and to strengthen the nursing profession through the delivery of superior advocacy, research, education and other professional and clinical resources to nurses and other health care professional.
• The Academy of Neonatal Nursing: This organization honors and supports the professionalism, dedication, and commitment of neonatal nurses. Their mission is to provide quality neonatal education and programs at a reasonable cost. They do this through professional, peer-reviewed publications, educational conferences, and offering books and other materials to newborn health care professionals.
• The Pediatric Care: This website offers information and stories about infant care on topics such as pre-conception, conception, growth and development, diseases, and CPR and drugs. They also have the growth and development stages of a newborn and young children, as well as articles on topics such as pediatric patients, preventive pediatrics, vaccination, developmental delay, and baby friendly hospital initiatives. Research studies are also a component of this website with information on operational definitions, research methodology, and quality of life in children with autism.