Neonatal and Pediatric Transport Service

Dedicated Specialty Transport Team

St. Joseph's Children's Hospital Neonatal and Pediatric Transport Service is a specialized transport team, trained in neonatal and pediatric medicine, that travels 24/7 by dedicated ambulance, medical helicopter or fixed wing jet, to pick up newborns, infants and children under 18 from other hospitals in West-Central Florida and bring them to St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital. We deliver family-centered care and a parent or designee can ride along with the patient in the ambulance or fixed wing jet.

Team Composition

The St. Joseph's Children's Hospital Neonatal and Pediatric Transport Service consists of a registered nurse, registered respiratory therapist and paramedic. Our transport service was the first cooling center in Tampa Bay to provide active cooling on transport to treat Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE), a condition that can develop when a baby’s brain is deprived of adequate amounts of blood or oxygen around the time of birth. This emergency procedure saves precious brain cells and must be administered as quickly as possible to avoid brain damage.

Other transportation and consultation services include:

• Transport to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at a nearby St. Joseph's Children's Hospital location
• Transport to a nearby St. Joseph's Children's Hospital emergency room or BayCare hospital ER
• Stabilization and critical care treatment during transport
• 24-hour access to board-certified pediatric intensive care specialists
• 24-hour access to board-certified pediatric cardiovascular surgeons
• Return transport of stable patients to referring hospital
• Local, state, national and international three-point transports

To arrange a telephone consultation and/or a pediatric patient transfer to St. Joseph's Children's Hospital, please call 1-800-277-KIDS (5437).