Graduate Certificate in Neonatal Intensive Care

Care of newborn babies and neonates with complex medical and surgical conditions requires a multidisciplinary team with expert knowledge and skills specific to this vulnerable group of patients.

The Graduate Certificate in Nursing Practice- Neonatal Intensive Care is designed to equip neonatal nurses with advanced skills and knowledge to provide evidence-based care for sick neonates in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

You will learn about neonatal conditions associated with preterm birth, congenital anomalies, respiratory diseases, birth trauma, peripartum hypoxia, brain injury, and metabolic disorders. You will explore family centred care and neonatal developmental care in the NICU environment. You will learn about end of life and palliative care and study the impact of life-threatening illnesses on parents and families.

Who the course is for Admission is based on a Bachelor of Nursing degree (or equivalent training) or Bachelor of Nursing/Bachelor of Midwifery (double degree), at least one year of clinical experience in an acute care setting within the five years prior to applying for the course, and current employment and clinical support in a tertiary Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Applicants must be registered nurses and have the support of their employing hospital for the Nursing Practice subject (Neonatal Intensive Care Nursing Practice), and the employing hospital must be equipped to support you to complete their studies.

International nurses with a working visa who meet the course entry requirements are also eligible to apply.

Career outcomes

On completion, you should have the clinical knowledge and skills to practice neonatal intensive care nursing at a competent level as benchmarked against Australian specialty practice competencies.

Further study

Students who complete the Graduate Certificate in Nursing Practice will meet the entry requirements for the Master of Advanced Nursing Practice.