NICU

What can I expect from the NICU?

Although the majority of newborn infants will be cared for in the central nursery after delivery, some infants will need more specialized care. The NICU, or Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, is a special nursery that provides specialized, in-depth care for sick, low birth weight or premature infants. Not all hospitals have a NICU and it may be necessary to transport a sick baby to another hospital that is capable of providing the proper care and treatment. At first, the NICU may be overwhelming, or maybe even scary. It is important to understand what happens in the NICU, who works in the NICU, common sights and sounds of the NICU and the reasons that a baby may need to be admitted for specialized care.

Staff in the NICU

Charge Nurse-A charge nurse is an RN that is in charge of a particular shift.
RN-An RN is a trained nurse that will be caring for your baby.
Neonatologist-A neonatologist is a highly educated and trained doctor that cares for newborns.
Respiratory Therapist- A specially trained medical professional that helps with breathing and administers medications.
Physical Therapist- A specially trained medical professional that helps the baby with feedings and movement.
Nutritionist - A medical specialist that helps the baby with feedings and IV nutrition.
Chaplain - An ordained minister that provides counseling and spiritual guidance to families.

Common Sights and Sounds in the NICU

Isolettes – A special bed for a newborn that is enclosed with clear plastic. The bed has temperature control to help the baby maintain a healthy body temperature. On the side, there are holes that allow caregivers to examine the baby and parents to touch their baby.
Infant Warmer - A special bed with a radiant heater over the top of the bed.
Phototherapy Lights – A special blanket that is attached to the baby’s isolette to help rid the baby’s system of excess bilirubin that causes jaundice.
Feeding tubes - Feeding tubes carry formula or pumped breast milk to the baby. Most infants in the NICU are not able to feed from a bottle and will need a feeding tube.
IV- An IV, or Intravenous Line, is inserted into the baby’s vein for fluids and medications. IV lines can be placed in the hand, arm, feet, leg, scalp or umbilical cord. IV’s allow doctors and nurses to give medications and fluids without having to give actual injections.
Monitors- Monitors are a common finding in the NICU. Every baby is attached to a monitor that shows their vital signs. Monitors are attached to the baby with small, painless stickers connected to wires.
Pulse Oximetry Machine – A machine that displays the blood oxygen levels onto the monitor. The machine is usually taped to the baby’s finger or toe and a small red light will show through.
Temperature Probe – A temperature probe is a wire attached to the baby’s skin with a small patch that obtains and displays the infant’s temperature.
Ventilator – Ventilators, or breathing machines, are used for babies that are not able to breathe without assistance. A tube is generally placed into the windpipe through the mouth or nose.

Babies can be admitted to the NICU for various reasons. Most commonly, babies are admitted to the NICU because they are born too early or they are in such respiratory distress that a breathing machine is necessary. Other reasons include diseases, infections, meconium aspiration, heart complications, low birth weight and other abnormalities.

While your baby is in the NICU, it is important to spend quality time with him/her and ask questions to that you understand how your baby is being cared for and the reasons for treatment. Find out the rules and policies of the NICU, as they vary from hospital to hospital. If possible, care for your baby as much as you can. Ask the nurses if you can help feed, bathe, hold and/or change them. If the baby is in critical condition, you may not be able to care for him/her. If you are not able to hold and/or care of your baby, you can still hold their hand, talk to them and sing to them. If you are able to hold the baby, you may be able to breastfeed.

Although the NICU can be a scary and stressful environment, they are available to help care for sick babies. Take care of yourself during this difficult time and be optimistic that your baby will be home with you soon!

Comments: NICU

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erynl33 (team pink) - 249 days ago.
Hi all. I'd like to tell you my story of my preemie son. (You can see him on my page in pictures). My premature labor was caused by me flying on an airplane. I was told it would be ok if I did, so I did. I had my son in a different state than I lived hehe, luckily I had family there. I had my son at 34 1/2 weeks. I know that's not super preemie, but it still is considered preemie. He was 5 lbs 5 oz and 17 inches. He spent a week in the NICU b/c he couldn't keep his temperature up. I will tell you the doctor's scared me. They told me he will most likely be small all his life. He may have vision problems. He may be behind, in growth and mentaly. It was scarey. Today my son Alex is 6 yrs old. He has 3 trophies, 2 for basketball and one for baseball. He looks like an 8 year old. He is super tall and extremly muscular for a little guy. To the point he was so heavy the doctor wanted to classify him as obese b/c of his weight, but couldn't b/c the doctor saw how muscular he was. He doesnt have any mental issues at all, and he is an amazing little kid, and super athletic. (He LOVES sports). I'm telling you guys this just in case you may have had someone in your life scare you about a preemies future. You could never tell he was a preemie. He was a fat baby and put on weight easily, then shot up to almost 4 feet tall at age 6 and a size 3 shoe. :)

jennykins@satx.rr.com - 250 days ago.
I'm Jenny, mother to an almost 5-year-old son, Henry, who was born at 34 weeks and spent 28 days in the NICU following preeclampsia. Now, I'm a doctoral student researching Mother-to-infant attachment in the NICU for preterm infants. If you are a mother of a preterm infant and would like to particpate in a 20 minute, anonymous, online survey, click the link below (or copy into your browser). Your participation may help researchers and mental health professionals better understand which NICU interventions are most strongly related to mother-to-infant attachment for preemies. http://stmarys.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_BrlyBJAimiBxG Thanks, Jenny Burkholder jennykins@satx.rr.com Principal Investigator Marriage & Family Therapy Doctoral Student St. Mary's University San Antonio, Texas

charmara - 854 days ago.
My DS has been in the nicu for 11 days now. Getting very frustrated with the DR's. They all want too do tests, but they are never there to order them and they seem to never show up to see him. I think DR's have actually done something for him 3 out of the 11 days. Feeling very frustrated and lost. :( I thought DS being in the nicu was going to accomplish something besides draining my insurance and pocket. :(

Tiana82 - 924 days ago.
My baby is a week old today. She was born at 34 weeks due to my blood pressure and kidneys shutting down. Since then she has been in the NICU and thriving. She eats all her bottles, maintains her temp, has no oxygen or breathing issues...is just overall perfect. She is slowly gaining weight and is at 4 lbs 2 oz now but the nurses are giving me crap saying she needs to stay till she is 5 lbs. Sorry but I think I will be going above someone else's head on this one. If she is dong everything a full term baby is suppose to do then I want her home. I can bring her to her pediatrician every day to get weighed but to keep her there for no medical reason but so you can weigh her every day is ridiculous. this hospitals NICU has more babies in it then the regular nursery so I wonder if they keep babies there just to justify their depts. Any comments are welcome

charlihadley - 934 days ago.
My son was born on March 8,2010! everything was going PERFECT....until we noticeded severe drops in his Heart Rate during my contractions when i was fully dialated....from start to finish of pushing it took exactly 10 minutes...and the cord was tightly wrapped around his neck....dr. popped it off fast...but he still aspirated. He was taken to the nursery to be put on oxygen...then they told me he needed to be transfered to the nicu in a town 30 minutes away...loaded him up in the ambulance and took him there....12 hours after i delivered i signed my papers to be released early and left to be by his side. I totally understand how hard it is especially if you have another child like i do.. My other son was 2 and it was soooo hard to leave him to be with logen in the nicu but i new it was Vital for me to be with my precious baby boy in the nicu...we went every morning at 8-12...went to lunch..came back from 3-6 then went home and repeated that for 1 whole week....scary to see all the ivs in their arms...head...feet...cords everywhere..and to see all the other babies that are even sicker than my child.. gosh i could just cry everytime i tell my story i didn't even get to hold him for 4 days and taht was tramatizing to me to see my baby..and see the nurses handling him and holding him...and to know that i was not allowed to yet. :(....i was so thankful to have my parents there helping with our older son. it was a bitter sweet time for my mother...as her baby girl...her dog mikee of 13 years passed away the night before she got to go see logen in the nicu and hold him for the first time!.....crazy emotions...my husband did take off 5 more days adn was there all except the day i got to take him home with me!!! :) that was the most happiest day of my life!!!!!! so handg in there...i was extremely depressed and cried all day everyday for that week in a total confusion.......but the day he came home everything was perfect and exactly how i wanted it to be from the beginning!!!!! the time will pass so fast..i can't believe Logen will be 8 months old in a week!!! sooo fast...so hang in there!!

Mommacass - 964 days ago.
I just gave birth 9/23/10 to my 34 weeker, he is doing well, his lungs are still maturing and he cannot bottle feed or breast feed yet. the NICU is my home...but hopefully not for long!

havinghisbaby4422 - 1130 days ago.
i had my daughter last night at 29w3d...she is 3lbs and cried when she came out. she is being cared for by nicu and im scared and i hate to leave her! its so hard..i love her so much and havent been able to hold her yet. she grabbed her daddys hand last night but i could hardly touch her.

HeatherRose88 - 1187 days ago.
i had my son at 27 weeks. he's 11 weeks old now and is still in the nicu. If any preemie moms are interested, i started a preemie vlog on youtube and I have videos of him weekly sowing his development up until now. it's at www.youtube.com/alkalinerush Sending lots of love and hugs you all the mamas out there dealing with the nicu hell.

hopesmom08 - 1226 days ago.
I am the mother of a 27 weeker who is 13 months old actual 10 months adj. She is doing great developmentally but is having feeding issues out the wazoo. She has a cow's milk allergy and is now on probiotics and is having alot of trouble with her BMs she eats through a GTube 100% of the time as she refuses to eat orally. She was born ealry due to the following..... SCH at 9 weeiks, Leak at 12 weeks which was ignoref by OB. 20 weeks oligohydrmanios 27 weeks chorioamnionitis. I was told to abort at 20 weeks and Hope was 2 lbs 4 oz 13 and 3/4 inches at birth she had 3 pneumos and an abdomen tube was on the vent for a month3 differnet vents oscillator,Jett, Conventional. She had so many issues it would take me a week to post. I am full time mommy, I truly dedicate my life to my daughter Hope. I write books, Work from home am a full time student in college for my BA in communication I volunteer and love to exercise and just be a mommy.

alexandnicksmommy - 1237 days ago.
My son was born Dec 18th a very healthy 8lbs 14 oz. Soon after his birth they rushed him away to Special Care(what they call our NICU) in our small hospital. He has been there now for a week and a half. It really sucks because he is a healthy baby who has some breathing issues. He will be there for atleast another 5 days. I thankfully have a room when I visit the hospital I can visit with him then go rest or watch TV. The worst thing of all though is when I come home. I hate leaving him. And I have a 2 year old so I can't be there all the time. And I had a c-section so I can't drive myself to the hospital. I pray everyday that he can come home with our family and stop this back and forth to the hospital!!!

austin6274 - 1237 days ago.
tquinn - my son was born at 34 weeks and was in the NICU for 7 days. His only thing that kept him in there was he was not eating off the bottle enough. Then one day it does really click for them. I hope your daughter gets to come home soon. It will be all worth it! Oh, and my son is 12 weeks now and weighs 13 pounds. So hopefully your little girl will grow like him!!

tquinn - 1246 days ago.
I am having a very difficult time right now. My full term daughter is still in the NICU, she needs to eat from a bottle a lot better. Christmas is fast approaching and she most likely will not be home for this special time. I cry and pray and try to stay distracted but I still can't stop feeling upset. It's hard to visit because time is limited with my autistic daughter and the rule of no one under 18 allowed at the hospital. I am feeling desperate and sad. I do realize that there are children who are not as lucky as my daughter but I am so worried about the early bonding process being missed out on. I often wonder if she will have problems when she is older because of this experience.

Bri - 1266 days ago.
micheleac2 - Good Luck! I can say my best friend from high school had her baby at 29weeks. He is turning 3 this year! He was a little behind his first year but he doesn't show any effects of being born early now. Your baby is in very good care and I'm sure everything will be fine. I'm sorry he's so far away from you but I'm sure once you've recovered from your section you'll be able to spend a lot more time with him.

micheleac2 - 1267 days ago.
I just gave birth early sunday november 22nd, i was 29 weeks and i had to have an emergency c-section due to a growing blood clot in my placenta, my son aiden is 2 hours away from me in NICU, he weighed 1 pound 12 ounces and he was on oxygen but he is now off of it but still in a ventilater, he still has air going to his lungs to keep him from having a hard time to take a breath. he cant eat on his own so he has a feeding tube, he also has patent ductus artiosus which is a heart murmer, he has been given his doses of meds for it and hopefully monday it will have closed. aiden is my second son my first which was a stillborn due to my protein issues and when i had to have aiden so early i just thought i was gonna lose him too, he has only been in the nicu for 6 days and he has really come far in that time with him being taken off the oxygen. he now weighs 2 pounds and he is doing great, i didnt get to be a momma to my first son because i lost him at 36 weeks. im very thankful aiden didnt not suffer the same faite his brother did just 2 years ago. they say aiden cant come home until febuary 3rd 2010 thats his due date b/c of medicaid, and with me living 2 hours away from him it makes it really hard to have to leave him. calling about 3 or 4 times a day if not more just really isnt enough, its really hard not having him home, i have gotten to hold him one time, i had to wait till fri november 27th to first see my baby due to me having to be put to sleep during the c-section, and when i saw my baby and him being so tiny i cried like a baby, b/c i was scared that i might lose him too, but now that i see he is being taken very good care of and with him doing so great for how small he is and when he was born, i feel better leaving and coming back in a few days. i dont want to but i cant afford to stay long. i have 9 weeks and 3 days till my baby gets to come home its gonna be hard but time with fly by and i know he will make it through this. i pray that all the babys in the nicu get to come home safe. and mommas i know how you feel.

AmberP - 1275 days ago.
My son was born at 36 wks and one day via c-section. He was born with his bowls on the outside of his stomach. Hw weighed 3.13 lbs and was 16 inches long.The first week he had to slowly have his bowls pushed back in a little at a time each day, at the end of that week he had surgery to make sure everything was in place and to get sewed up. He was on a ventilator the first two weeks of his life and I wasn't aloud to hold him during that time. He had to have another surgery about a month or so ago to have a central line put in.On sunday he will be 12 wks old and they just told us today that he can finally come home next week if he continues to do well over the weekend. I live 2 hrs away from the nicu he's in so I am so ready for him to finally be home with me.

lourds - 1279 days ago.
kayvee, I felt the same when my son had to be left behind in the hospital for 18 days. Get all the rest you can have so that when they arrive home, you will have the energy to give hugs and kisses and caring and loving they need from you... Congratulations and God bless!

kayvee - 1279 days ago.
I gave birth to my identical twins at 31 weeks. One at 3.6 lbs and the other ar 3.10 lbs. I don't know exactly when they wil be home but it breaks my heart every night when I have to leave my girls behind ..........

Tara83 - 1324 days ago.
Having my Son in the NICU was the HARDEST thing I have ever had to experience in my life. He was born full term at 37 weeks weighing 7 pounds 5 ounces, we were so excited for his arrival and it was heart breaking when he was taken from our arms an hour later. He remained in the NICU for 9 days and spent some of those days on life support. His situation was so touch and go that it felt like my heart had been ripped out of my chest. We did not leave the hospital the entire time he was in the NICU, we slept at his bed side just to be closer to him. On the 14 of this month he will now be home with us for 3 months and I thank God for every day I have with him ;o) I also have a daughter who was 17 months old at the time of her brothers birth and having to be away from her for all of that time made the situation harder. You can never prepare yourself for the NICU experience but finding a strong support system will help. I am glad to hear from the posts I have read on here that all of your babies have been NICU survivors ;o)

alison33 - 1395 days ago.
mamalala~ He got an infection at birth and was stressed out during delivery. We didn't even know if he would make it or not, he was very sick. I remember he was blue and not making a sound when they showed him to me after he was born. Very scary.

mamalala - 1395 days ago.
urgh i know! My daughter was in for 2 weeks and it seemed like eternity to me.. i cant imagine months. It was such a horrible pain leaving the hospital without her. it felt so unnatural. im glad your little one is a healthy babe now! Why was your babe in?

alison33 - 1396 days ago.
mamalala~ I have also had a child in the NICU for 7 days, it was the hardest thing I have ever had to do was leave him there and go home everynight. I am just thankful that he turned out to be a healthy boy. I can't imagine having a preemie and leaving them at the hospital for months.

mamalala - 1396 days ago.
Having a sick infant in the NICU is honestly the hardest thing Ive ever experienced.. To any of you mommies out there who currently have a baby in the NICU, stay strong and keep your head up..Try and remind yourself you'll be looking back at this experience some time from now with a happy healthy baby.. My daughter has only been home a week and a half and I can already see this.. Best of luck to all of you, youre in my thoughts.

brandyq - 1409 days ago.
I didnt even know this forum existed!! I have lots of NICU experience. My first child was born at 26 weeks with IUGR and being SGA. He weighed 1 pound 4 ounces. He stayed 6 1/2 months in the NICU. I had HELLP syndrome with him. My second child was born at 30 weeks and 6 days and spent 35 days in the NICU! She also has IUGR and was SGA. Also because of HELLP Syndrome!

lourds - 1485 days ago.
My son is born @ 31 weeks gestation (weight: 1700g) due to preeclampsia, via c-section after a 5-day hospital bedrest. he stayed in the NICU for 18 days. Through prayers, the people who took care of him were great and he is with us now and is almost ten lbs after 3 months.

McGill31 - 1492 days ago.
My son was born at 32 weeks by csection due to my high protien and bllod pressure. I was in the hospital on bed rest a month before he was born then stayed 3 days after. My son had to stay in the NICU for a month due to breathing issues and feeding issues as well. He was on oxyen and had a feeding tube he weighed 4lbs 7oz when he was born. He was born Feburary 26,2009 and got to come home March 25,2009 he is now 7lbs and doing good. It is very stressful to have to leave your baby in the NICU while you get to go home. I cried while he was there the whole time.I wish the best for all of you and the babies.