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A Newborn Care Specialist (NCS), is a highly specialized, qualified, skilled and trained in-home childcare provider who focus on the care and well-being of the newborn/infant. An NCS will usually work with your family and will give particular care to your brand-new arrival after you bring the baby home from the hospital up to 12-16 weeks of your baby’s life. Providing you with the support needed to help you adjust to caring for your baby. Your NCS will be there to nurture and care for your newborn while providing guidance and education to you on issues such as safe sleeping, soothing, swaddling, burping, developing healthy sleep habits, proper bathing techniques, cord care, circumcision care, managing problems such as reflux and more. Many NCSs also have specific education and vast experience with multiples, special needs, preemies, and a lot of other more specific areas. NCSs can work day, night, or around-the-clock shifts.

First time parents, parents that are having multiples, moms who have other small children, especially toddlers, to chase around all day, women who know they will be having a C-section and want to have the support upon coming home from the hospital, and professional women who are returning to demanding jobs. Also, many families today do not have family living close by and will often hire a Newborn Care Specialist to provide education and wisdom that will set them up for success.

The primary role of a Newborn Care Specialist is to provide assistance and education after the parents bring the baby home from the hospital. Many times, this help will include scheduling, feeding, sleep training, help with breast feeding and more. Newborn Care Specialists will generally work night shifts managing the baby’s care while the parents sleep restfully. When the baby wakes up, the Newborn Care Specialist feeds by bottle or brings the baby to the mom for nursing. After feeding, the baby is burped and changed and put back to bed. During the daytime a Newborn Care Specialist will provide similar care and also strive to create a nurturing and stimulating environment for the baby during waking hours. Other duties might include but are not limited to; establishing healthy sleep habits, sterilizing, cleaning and preparing bottles, bringing baby to mom to breastfeed, sterilizing and cleaning pump parts, soothing baby back to sleep, feeding and changing the baby/babies, maintaining feeding and sleep logs, and tidying the nursery. Newborn Care Specialists are generally not responsible for household duties unrelated to the new baby or for the care of other children in the household.

A Newborn Care Specialist will typically perform the following duties: • Educate and support parents. • Create a smooth transition for family during the newborn stage. • Troubleshoot potential issues of concern with the newborn and offer professional options to resolve them. • Maintain a thorough log of infant feeding and sleep patterns. • Assist mother with any feeding issues she may have, including the facilitation of breastfeeding and be knowledgeable in answering breastfeeding related questions. • Soothes babies using skilled and proven techniques that help calm newborns. To provide care for the newborn and perform some or all of the following tasks: • Diapering • Changing • Bathing • Umblical & Circumcision Care • Bottle Preparation (Breastmilk & Formula) • Bottle Cleaning • Organization & Maintenance of Nursery • Create a regular feeding schedule • Assist in establishing healthy sleep habits • Maintain a thorough log of eating, sleeping and behavioral patterns • Take over complete care of newborn at night to provide parents time to sleep

• To provide assistance with Sleep Training beyond 3 months and assist parents with helping infants and toddlers sleep through the night. • Knowledgeable in Reflux/Colic and available to provide helpful solutions caring for babies with GER/GERD. • Experienced in working with multiples and effectively teaching parents how to care for more than one baby at a time. Their knowledge includes how to effectively set up the nursery and a routine to accommodate twins, triplets and quadruplets. • Doing consultations regarding any newborn issues that may arise. • Knowledgeable in working with premature babies and understanding how to care and address their special and unique needs.

Most Newborn Care Specialists work overnight between 8 to 12 hours shifts or 24 hours a day with a 4-6 hour break. Overnight care is designed to help parents get more sleep while the Newborn Care Specialist tends to the baby, and as time goes on, she will very gently teach your baby how to sleep longer stretches so your baby can sleep through the night (8-12 hours by 8-16 weeks.) Your NCS will also be able to educate and assist you by answering any questions that come up throughout the day, making suggestions and giving instructions to help you manage the day-to-day tasks and routines with your baby/babies. 24 hour care is a temporary live-in situation where your NCS will be there to assist you in the day and night time care of your baby, whether you just want your NCS standing by making recommendations or if you prefer her to have a more hands on approach with the baby is your decision, most will customize their services to fit your needs.

The term “Newborn Care Specialist” is often interchangeable with “Baby Nurse or Night Nurse.” A Baby Nurse is a Registered Nurse that provides care for a newborn baby. It is illegal for a Newborn Care Specialist to call herself a Baby Nurse. Although very knowledgeable in all aspects of newborn care, a Newborn Care Specialist does NOT offer any medical advice or clinical procedures.

To become a Newborn Care Specialist you basically need to possess an unconditional love for babies. Some typical backgrounds of those working in the profession include: • Nannies • Medical professionals (nurses, emt’s, medical assistants, etc.) • Mothers • Preschool teachers • Daycare providers • Individuals with a background in child development • Postpartum Doulas

If you are breastfeeding your baby the Newborn Care Specialist will bring the baby to you for feeding and take the baby when you are finished giving you more time to rest while she burps, change diapers and get your baby back to sleep, or if you prefer you can pump and leave the milk for the NCS to feed your baby. Giving a bottle of pumped milk at least once during the night shift is a wonderful option as it will allow mom to get better rest and milk supply is maintained by using a pumping routine to compensate for the missed nursing session.

Baby Nurse is an old phrase that was given to a person who came into the home and cared for a newborn and was also used in place of the title Newborn Care Specialist. A Baby Nurse by today’s standards is a Registered Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN). Individuals with this type of background are available to work with families who have babies dealing with medical challenges including prematurity, genetic disorders or other medical conditions that present life-threatening risks to the infant. Many of these newborns require close monitoring and care by a knowledgeable, trained and experienced Baby Nurse when discharged home from the hospital. The problem with this term is that it is illegal to use the term “nurse “ in your title if you are not a licensed nurse. It is unfortunate that some people are calling themselves “Baby Nurses” when in fact they do not have any medical training and upon further research you will find that many of these ladies do not have any formal training in newborn care. Please be sure to check the credentials of any person you hire to care for your baby especially if they identify as a Baby Nurse. For more information about distinguishing between a Baby Nurse and a Newborn Care Specialist please visit the ​​​​International Nanny Association’s website by clicking here….http://nanny.org/baby-nurse-vs-ncs/(http://nanny.org/baby-nurse-vs-ncs/) The title Night Nurse is the same as the Baby Nurse title except that the Night Nurse comes only at night. If you have a medically fragile baby and feel you need a licensed Baby/Night Nurse please be sure to check their credentials. * In the U.S only an RN/LPN/LVN with a degree from an accredited college who passed the NCLEX exam can be called a nurse, baby nurse, night nurse, or maternity nurse.

A postpartum doula’s role is to “mother the mother”. A trained postpartum doula is also an educator but primarily focuses on the needs of the mother. She is available to provide care during the postpartum period and will assist with duties such as laundry, cooking, running errands and nurturing the family in whatever their needs dictate. She offers support with both parents, siblings and family members and is well rounded in her knowledge of baby care. There are several Newborn Care Specialists who are trained in both aspects and it is a perfect complement to the profession.

A Newborn Nanny is a nanny trained and skilled in basic baby care and development from birth to 6 months old. She works with families of newborns and infants and is knowledgeable in newborn care, infant development and basic eating, sleeping and age appropriate activities. A Night Nanny typically works 8-10 hour shifts overnight to provide much needed rest for the parents. Because she typically only works when everyone is asleep, her responsibilities are limited, insuring that the home is quiet. She will feed the baby or babies, change and re-settle them or if the mom is breastfeeding, she will often bring the baby to the mom for a feed and then get them settled down again. She may load or unload the dishwasher, do the baby’s laundry and restock the nursery. She is also knowledgeable in calming methods and she may have some advanced infant-focused education and a basic knowledge of sleep methodology.