She is a neonatal nurse practitioner who has had a joint practice in the UF Health NICU unit since 1990. Parker also has NIH-funded research which involves nutritional support of the premature infant with an emphasis on breastfeeding infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). She is currently funding by the National Institute of Nursing Research to study the risks and benefits of routine gastric residual aspiration and evaluation in very premature infants and the optimal timing of initiation of milk expression following the delivery of a very premature infant. She has been featured in many publications highlighting her research and expertise in neonatal nursing and nutrition of the premature infant.