From NICU dad to neonatal nurse practitioner

Jason Downing was working as a licensed practical nurse in rehabilitation when his wife was diagnosed with preeclampsia and ultimately had to deliver their first baby at 28 weeks. Born in Orem, Utah, Jason joined the Army after high school and got his LPN after basic training. He stayed in the reserves 14 years. During that time, he worked in the rehabilitation unit at Utah Valley Hospital in Provo. He knew he wanted to pursue an RN, but it wasn’t until that premature delivery – and the three-month stay in the Utah Valley Hospital NICU that followed – that his career came into focus.?

You’ve been a nurse for a while, but you just graduated as a nurse practitioner, is that right??

Yes, I graduated in December with my NP, and I just started a new job at the end of April at Primary Children’s. My role before that was as a NICU nurse at Utah Valley Hospital, taking care of two to three babies at a time. I’ve had my RN since 2017.?

Your first experience with the NICU there was not as an RN, though.?

I was first exposed to the NICU as a dad with my firstborn. He was three months early and we were in the NICU up to his due date, so about three months. My wife was having high blood pressure, so they referred her to a maternal fetal health physician who monitored her for several weeks, and it just kept getting worse. So then she was admitted to antepartum for about a week, on like a bed rest kind of thing.??

One morning they ran her labs and her levels were too high, so they basically said, we have to deliver this baby today. I was at work on the rehab floor.?

At Utah Valley Hospital??

Correct. She called me and said they're having me deliver the baby today. You need to get here. So I just ran over to the antepartum floor. We didn’t know what to expect. Our birth plan and situation was flipped upside down essentially, and we were in a whole different world.?

Three months early is very early. The baby basically missed the whole third trimester. He was 28 weeks gestational age when he was born, 2 lbs. 11 ounces. I just remember him being really small, seeing him on the warmer bed. The first few hours are very critical to getting them stable and breathing. They ended up having to intubate him in the delivery room. I remember that like it was yesterday.??

The surgeon came in and looked at it and said, right away, "Cancel all my other appointments. We need to take him into surgery right now."

He actually did get sick. Most of it was normal initially, but then they did a septic workup and there was bacteria in his blood. One morning we opened up his diaper and saw this herniated red spot on his on his scrotum, so they thought that might be the source of the infection.??

It was kind of a unique situation where, at the time, the NICU didn’t have a pediatric surgeon, but that day there happened to be one at the hospital because he was seeing another patient. So he came and looked at it and said, right away, ‘Cancel all my other appointments. We need to take him into surgery right now.’ His appendix had herniated and burst. So that was the source of infection.?

We’ve always called him our miracle baby. It changed our lives for sure.?

How so??

Well it opened my eyes to that type of nursing. Before that, I didn’t have any plans to become a neonatal nurse. I was initially thinking about becoming a nurse anesthetist.?

What was it about that experience that made you think, this is what I want to do??

It’s such an emotional and difficult state to be in the NICU, but I got to see the interactions the nurses had with parents and how they used their experience and knowledge to bring some comfort to these babies and parents that, you know, didn’t know what they’d signed up for. And they got him better.?

It was actually my wife who encouraged me to look into the NICU. I wasn’t sure if they even had male nurses. But I applied and I got the job.?

It’s a whole different world going from adults to neonates. It was a big shift, and it took me out of my comfort zone. But it was that experience as a parent that first made me think, you know, I could really enjoy this.?

What do you like most about working in the NICU??

I really enjoy being in a position to help families, and help infants stabilize and start their lives. These babies come early or they’re sick, and they’re in your hands. They’re in your care, and you develop a relationship with the families and get to be part of this experience they will never forget.?

We still remember nurses and nurse practitioners from that time. It's kind of ingrained in your memory. And so I think it’s rewarding to be part of that for someone else.?

What do you like to do outside of work??

Well, I have four kids.?

That’s a lot of kids.?

My first was that NICU baby and he’s now 12, and my youngest is three. After going back to school and graduating, I feel like I’ve missed out on a lot of family time, so I’m looking forward to going outdoors this summer and having new adventures with them.?