Neonatal Services/NICU

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Neonatal Services/NICU

The Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Rady Children's treats the most critically ill newborns, many of whom suffer from severe heart and lung conditions or are born extremely premature.

In its comprehensive survey (2008, 2009, 2010) to identify the top children’s hospitals in the country in 10 pediatric specialties, U.S. News & World Report ranks Rady Children’s as one of America's Best Children's Hospitals in neonatology.

Rady Children's NICU offers the following:

• Board-certified neonatologists, registered nurses and nurse practitioners trained in advanced life support.
• Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO), a high-tech therapy that temporarily performs the work of a baby's heart and lungs, giving the organs time to develop and repair themselves. Rady Children's is the only facility in San Diego and Imperial counties that provides this treatment.
• Inhaled Nitric Oxide (INO) therapy for babies experiencing pulmonary artery hypertension. This treatment helps relax blood vessels in an infant's lungs, allowing for a smoother recovery.
• Advanced skilled transport team (RN-led) providing services throughout San Diego County.
• Advanced cardiac specialty skill in post-op management.
• Specially trained occupational and physical therapists help the newborn baby by facilitating motor and sensory development.
• Newborn developmental follow-up where licensed therapists evaluate a child's development at 6 months of age. If any signs or symptoms of delay are detected, specialists provide parents with the appropriate resources to help their child reach his or her full potential.
• Active parental involvement where nurses encourage parents to spend time with their infants and learn how to care for them.
• A Neonatal Outreach program where infants are returned to the hospital in which they were born when they no longer require the intensive care at Rady Children's.

Rady Children's also operates Level II nurseries at Scripps Memorial Hospitals in La Jolla and Encinitas and has an agreement with Scripps Hospital in Chula Vista to provide services to their Level II nursery and pediatric unit.