-: I think now, in the States, in an ICU setting
you have to have a Bachelor's.
So you have to have your Bachelor's of Science in Nursing.
You can go into the PICU as a new grad.
You have to have a love for kids,
and a patience for parents.
I think most people will say,
"Oh, I would hate to do kids because the parents."
But to be honest, it's exactly what we're taught
in nursing school.
The parents are just as much your patient as the kid.
You know, if you do patient family-centered care
and include them in the care of their child,
because they happen to be their parents,
then I don't find that a problem
in taking care of my patients.
You do have to have a strong heart.
Also, the nurses in the PICU tend
to be a little rough around the edges,
so I think you have to have some thick skin also.
You have to know your stuff, because it's a kid's life,
or two kids' lives, you know?
And all that information is given to you in nursing school.
You may get out and be like,
"Oh my God, I don't know what I'm doing."
But that will come in orientation wherever you work,
and experience.
I do have my diploma in tropical medicine.
If you plan to work overseas in any capacity,
I highly, highly recommend that.
And then you get your basic pediatric advanced life support.
I have adult advanced life support,
because some 17-year-olds are like grown men,
or women, for that matter.
Kids are getting bigger these days.
I have a trauma nurse certification,
which is helpful if you work in a setting
where traumas are immediately flighted down to the PICU,
which is often the case, in a teaching hospital, at least.