Aim: The study aimed to revisit the roles of nurses working in the neonatal intensive care unit in a specific university hospital located in the Eastern Region to pursue Saudi Vision 2030-to provide excellent quality of life and well-being for its national citizens.
Background: The neonatal intensive care unit is one of the most crucial hospital units caring for high-risk neonates with conditions like pre- and post-maturity and congenital anomalies. The nurses' experiences are vital to achieving the Saudi Vision 2030's Health Sector Transformation Strategy.
Methods: Descriptive Phenomenology. Data collection utilized semi-structured individual interviews with sixteen (16) neonatal intensive care unit nurses for 10 months from March 2019 to January 2020. Colaizzi Method was used in data analysis, and the COREQ criteria list was utilized in data reporting.
Results: Three major themes emerged from the participants' narratives: (1) 'mokadem alreayah alshamela': holistic caregiver; (2) 'muzawed malomat': information provider; and (3) 'yad almusaadah': helping hand.
Conclusion: Revisiting the various roles will align neonatal intensive care unit nurses' critical characteristics towards Saudi Vision 2030, focusing solely on improving service providers' quality and safety principles and skills.
Implication for nursing management: Revisiting the roles of the neonatal intensive care unit nurses would provide an alignment to the goals and objectives of the future initiatives of Saudi Arabia towards its Vision 2030.
Keywords: Saudi Arabia; critical care; neonatal nursing; nurses; nursing; qualitative research.
© 2022 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.