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Welcome to the NICU
Welcome to the NICUMany of the babies in the NICU are born prematurely while others can be either late preterm or full-termbabies. They are here because they need help growing or need to get better.“The NICU is a place where babies come if they have any type of problem that requires more nursingcare and observation than can be provided in a normal nursery for healthy babies. So we get a varietyof babies in the NICU, including babies who are premature, babies who have congenital anomalies thatmight require consultation with specialists or a surgeon, and babies who may be term but haveproblems like infections or jaundice, and need special attention.”“The NICU is very technically complicated and it's certainly a very scary place when you enter into theNICU. But all of that technology really has furthered the care of babies and really has a directrelationship to the positive outcomes.”Our experienced NICU staff is there to help no matter what baby might have.“Neonatology is very much a team effort. So, you have physicians, you have nurses, and we have carecoordinators to help kind of plan what life is like not only when you are in the NICU, but after you leave.”“The nurses are always at the bedside, if something changes, it's great to know that we have nursesand respiratory therapists that are paying attention to the whole baby.”“And basically, the way we all work together is that we try to talk every day. One of the things that werecognize is important is that the parents are very much a part of this team, and we do a lot to try toinclude them.”“The standard of care in NICUs right now is revolving around family center care. And that means thatwe want to include our families really in every aspect of care as that is appropriate. We really arepartners with the families, because it's important that they know everything that they need to in order tobe able to care for the babies once they get home. So, we're in a unique position to be able to care for,not just one patient, but an entire family.”“I think the NICU is a really nurturing place. The nurses are so, so, so helpful. So, I think that’s beenone of the best parts of being in the NICU is just having that constant support and guidance from them,especially since it's my first baby.”Working alongside neonatologists and other specialists, the bedside nurses are the ones who spend the mosttime with your baby.“When a baby is first admitted we go through all the admission checklists. We let them know whatthey're going to see, what's going on with their baby when they first arrive, and then also educate themon the staff, what the purpose of all the doctors, the residents, the respiratory therapists, things likethat. If their baby has any special needs, we also go through all those things.”Life in the NICU probably won’t be easy but do the very best you can to be involved with your baby’s care.You’ll be glad you did.“It's hard to be a mom in the NICU. But the nurses and doctors make it lot easier. It's really the onlyplace you want your baby to be because you get the best care. You want her to come home. You wanther to eat and not have setbacks. But the NICU, it's not as scary as it seems.”This program is for informational purposes only. Publisher disclaims all guarantees regarding the accuracy, completeness,or suitability of this video for medical decision making. For all health related issues please contact your healthcare provider.PRG00002B EN WelcomeToTheNICU.pdf© The Wellness NetworkPage 1 of 1
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