Final answer:
Nurses help maintain neonatal body temperature and prevent evaporative heat loss by drying the baby and using a dry blanket, which supports newborn homeostasis.
Step-by-step explanation:
Nurses can prevent evaporative heat loss in the newborn by drying the baby after birth and wrapping the baby in a dry blanket. This approach helps in maintaining homeostasis and preventing hypothermia since newborns are particularly vulnerable to heat loss due to a higher surface area to volume ratio and lack of subcutaneous fat. To maintain thermal stability, it's also essential for neonates to be in a warm environment because their immature musculature limits their ability to generate heat through shivering, and they cannot quickly constrict superficial blood vessels in response to cold. Newborns also rely on nonshivering thermogenesis via the breakdown of brown adipose tissue to generate heat.