Newborn Intensive Care Unit
With 48 beds, the Florida Level III Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU) was designed for critically ill newborns. Additional space, advanced technology and trained health care professionals, along with an expanded parent area, provide warmth, intimacy and extraordinary care for our tiniest of patients. Special attention is given to lighting, noise control and overall design. The unit is colorful, a stark contrast to the white walls seen in many modern NICUs. With wood, carpet and artwork on the walls, and a swarm of "glowbug" lights to lead the way, the unit is a home away from home. Making the NICU even more technologically advanced, the unit now has 12 Giraffe® OmniBeds® which are designed to enhance and improve the care of neonates. The beds, manufactured by GE Healthcare, are state-of-the-art and provide uninterrupted thermal support for babies while providing complete access and visibility for caregivers. The Giraffe® OmniBed® is an incubator and radiant warmer in one. As an incubator, the bi-directional airflow through the double
walls provides a stable thermal environment that protects the baby from
heat loss. As a radiant warmer, the mattress is evenly warmed for the baby without also warming the caregiver. The baby receives the heat uniformly during procedures.
With these beds, the need to move infants from one space to another during their care, even during the most difficult of procedures, is eliminated. Instant three-sided access makes it easier for caregivers to provide care. Parent access is also easier, even for moms in wheelchairs. The Baby Susan™ Rotating Mattress rotates 360º to ensure proper positioning of babies during procedures without disturbing them.Level II Nursery at Baptist South As part of its new patienter care tower, under construction and expected to open in mid-2009, Baptist Medical Center South will include a level II Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU). A level II NICU can take care of babies born as young as 32 weeks with a higher acuity than is provided in a newborn nursery. Babies requiring ventilation, surgery or who have other, more critical needs would continue to be transferred to Wolfson Children's Hospital's Level III NICU, as they are now.
