Neonatal Intensive Care Awareness or NICU Awareness Month is hosted in September of every year and is designed to honor NICU patients, their families, and the NICU professionals who care for them. St. Vincent has cared for thousands of NICU babies over the years and is asking the community to share their story online to help bring more awareness around this subject.
When most families learn that a new baby will be added to their family, there is hope and excitement, but sometimes the unexpected happens. Each year more than half a million babies are admitted to the NICU and thanks to advances in neonatal medicine, more babies have been able to benefit from the specialized care at St. Vincent and other neonatal intensive care units across the country.
Having a NICU at your hospital is important because caring for infants is different than caring for other patients. The field of neonatology is highly specialized and requires a team of professionals that may include neonatologists, psychologists, lactation consultants, nurse practitioners, pulmonologists and more.
Most people assume babies who are treated in the NICU are premature, but more than half of the babies admitted to the NICU were born at normal birth weight and are 37 weeks gestation or older. St. Vincent physicians are thankful for the valuable data that is available to help them deliver the best NICU care for babies, but more research is needed.
What can you do help promote NICU awareness all year long?
- Educate yourself – most NICU babies have special needs that last longer than their NICU stay and some babies may have special health and developmental needs that last a lifetime. Seek out a family like yours or find out how to support another family in need
- Recognize NICU staff – write a note, send an email or gift to your local NICU staff to let them know that they’re making a difference and you appreciate them
- Share your story – most people have never heard of a NICU before. Let others know about the extraordinary care that NICUs provide. Use the hashtag #NICUAwareness if sharing online and tag St. Vincent Evansville on Facebook @StVincentEvansville
