Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

If you have a premature newborn, you know that nothing demands more raw courage, or evokes more terror, than putting your tiny baby’s life into another’s hands. Fortunately, at the Blanche Swanzy Lange Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, parents have good reason to be less anxious. Baylor Dallas is a regional referral center for high-risk pregnancies. A Level III center, nationally recognized for its care of premature and critically ill newborns, the Lange NICU draws referrals from throughout Texas. There were 896 infants admitted last year. They didn’t know how lucky they were to be there. But their parents did.

NICU services include developmental care, bereavement care, level III neonatal intensive care, “Mommie and Me” program, mother’s milk bank, and women’s psychology services.

Areas of Need

PERINATAL NEONATAL SIMULATION LAB

The perinatal and neonatal simulations team (SimTeam) performs mandatory simulation training for the nursing staff. We also use simulation training for nurse interns, physician residents and physicians. With simulation training, NICU medical teams can practice teamwork and communication skills in a realistic setting that closely matches their actual work environment. Research shows that nurses, residents and physicians who train with patient simulators respond more confidently, appropriately and effectively to various patient scenarios.

MOMMIE AND ME

Mommie and Me is a program that promotes breastfeeding and early skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby. We encourage mothers to nurse or pump every two to three hours while their babies are in the NICU. The Mommie and Me assistance fund provides vouchers for meals and parking for NICU mothers who are breastfeeding or pumping milk. The vouchers are important because these mothers need 300 to 500 extra calories per day, per baby.

NICU RENOVATIONS

Although parents have come to expect excellent clinical care at the Lange NICU, the surroundings are crowded and busy. Renovating the space would allow us to provide a more comfortable, family-centered environment.

DEVELOPMENTAL CARE

The brains and nervous systems of preterm infants develop rapidly during the weeks or months they stay in the NICU. However, babies born before the third trimester have a higher risk of impaired or delayed speech and language skills, cognitive skills and sensory integration. Often these delays are not detected until the child enters school. We address this issue with developmental care – literally, brain care for premature infants. Our goal is to promote the normal brain development the baby would have had if the pregnancy had gone to term. This care includes:

• A quiet, dimly lit environment mimicking the in utero experience
• Special neonatal equipment that will promote the best outcomes
• Specially trained caregivers who can adjust the care according to the baby’s stress signs
• A team of staff and family members that plans the infant’s care

Your contribution can help Baylor Health Care System Foundation serve more women and children each year through expanded programs and facilities. Please give online or call 214-820-3136 to discuss your gift today.

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