This video is all about NICU basics for those who might be expecting a NICU stay or those interested in working in a NICU one day. Learn about the different levels of care in the NICU as well as the team of people who work there.

Some parents know their baby will spend time in the NICU. For others, it's unexpected. Here's what you can expect if your newborn needs continuing care after labor and delivery.

Find out how to conduct a newborn head to toe assessment. Follow along and study by answering these questions:

1. What is the first thing we check and why?

2. Explain the process of using the bulb syringe.

3. Where do we listen to baby’s lungs?

4. What are the main three vitals we do on the baby?

5. What is your “headband” suture and your “Mohawk” suture?

6. How do babies breathe? 7. What is the bump in the middle of baby’s chest? Is it normal?

8. What is the most common abnormality found on a newborn?

9. What is pseudomenstruation?

10. What is it called when the urinary meatus is on the dorsal side of the penis?

11. What is the first stool referred to and what does it look like?

12. Where do we take baby’s temperature?

Babies in the NICU born prematurely will have their hearing screened at 35-36 weeks corrected. For those born less than 29 weeks, a follow up hearing test will occur before they are 1-year-old. The aim is to identify hearing impairments early, so early intervention, treatment, and management can occur.

The back part of the eye is called the retina. It receives light and sends visual signals to the brain. The eye develops very quickly in the last 12 weeks of pregnancy, therefore a baby born early has eyes that are still developing and is at risk of the blood vessels not growing normally.

If the blood vessels do not grow normally they can detach the retina and cause severe visual problems (Retinopathy of Prematurity). It is because of this that the developing retina is monitored in a baby’s eyes.

Who needs eye checks?

All premature babies born at 30 weeks gestation or earlier and all babies weighing 1,250 grams or less will need eye checks. Also some other babies who were born after 30 weeks but before 32 weeks gestation will need to be screened if they have been unwell or the doctor is concerned.

Does it hurt?

It doesn’t appear to hurt but it will be uncomfortable for a short period of time. Babies are given some oral sucrose or expressed breast milk for comfort, and a cuddle from parents helps once the test is finished.

Obstetrician Gynecologist Lauren D. Hyman discusses the feeling of devastation that can occur when a mother is separated from their child after delivery, and how this feeling can be overcome. If there is separation from a baby, whether it’s hours, days, or even weeks, it’s important to understand that there will still be a bond forming and it will be just as strong once a baby and parent are back together. To make the transition easier, have the nurse take pictures of the baby and keep it by your hospital bed so you can feel its presence. You can also take pictures of yourself and family to keep on the baby’s bassinet, so they can feel your presence.

In this episode of "Ask a Dietitian", Whitney Canfield, a NICU dietitian at Augusta University Medical Center, explains feeding protocols, feeding guidelines, and formula distribution in the NICU.

For babies in NICU born less than 29 weeks or 1000 grams, a Bayley's assessment is done when they are 1 and 2 years of age corrected as part of their growth and development follow-up.

The Bayley’s assessment looks at the growing child’s cognitive, language, social and emotional, adaptive and motor development.

In a training video meant for nurses, NICU parents react to scenarios and talk about how patients and families should be treated in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit.