Medical Student, Department of Medical Education, Albany Medical College.
Registered Nurse, Division of Neonatology, The Bernard and Millie Duke Children's Hospital at Albany Medical Center.
MedEdPORTAL. 2021 Jan 12;17:11069. doi: 10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11069.
The neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is often seen as off-limits by preclinical medical students. The NICU cuddler curriculum is a service-learning curriculum that invited preclinical medical students into the NICU to engage with and learn from one of the hospital's most vulnerable populations: neonates. The purpose of this preclinical experience was to provide students with exposure to the NICU and an opportunity to engage with babies, families, and the NICU staff, in order to improve students' clinical and communication skills.
First- and second- year medical students applied and were selected for participation. Participants cuddled neonates in the NICU for at least 10 hours, attended didactic sessions relevant to neonatal care, and debriefed with an attending each semester. The curriculum was evaluated via qualitative analysis and postparticipation surveys.
To date, a total of 73 students have participated in the NICU cuddler curriculum. Qualitative analysis revealed students felt included in patient care, empowered in their understanding of the social determinants of health, and useful in their role. A postsurvey of clinical medical students following participation revealed the sustained impact of this program.
This service-learning curriculum for preclinical medical students has the potential to enhance student understanding of the social determinants of health, increase exposure to the NICU, and promote interprofessional collaboration, ultimately increasing preparedness of students for their clinical years.
新生儿重症监护病房（NICU）通常对临床前医学生来说是禁区。NICU 拥抱者课程是一门服务学习课程，邀请临床前医学生进入 NICU，与医院最脆弱的人群之一：新生儿互动并向他们学习。这一临床前体验的目的是让学生接触 NICU，并为他们提供与婴儿、家庭和 NICU 工作人员接触的机会，以提高学生的临床和沟通技能。
一年级和二年级的医学生申请并被选中参加。参与者在 NICU 中至少拥抱新生儿 10 小时，参加与新生儿护理相关的讲座，并在每学期与主治医生进行汇报。该课程通过定性分析和参与后的调查进行评估。
迄今为止，共有 73 名学生参加了 NICU 拥抱者课程。定性分析显示，学生感到自己被纳入了患者护理中，对健康的社会决定因素有了更多的理解，并且在他们的角色中感到有用。参与后的临床医学生的后续调查显示，该项目具有持续的影响。
对于临床前医学生来说，这种服务学习课程有可能增强学生对健康的社会决定因素的理解，增加对 NICU 的接触，并促进专业间的合作，最终提高学生对临床学习的准备。
