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BayCare offers several convenient health care services that help get care you need to get back to feeling better.
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Neonatal Intensive Care (NICU) in Tampa, FL
The Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is part of St. Joseph's Children's Hospital, but it's located at its partner hospital across the street at St. Joseph's Women's Hospital. We also have Level II NICUs at Mease Countryside Hospital, Winter Haven Women's Hospital, St. Joseph's Hospital-South and Morton Plant Hospital.
Level IV NICU
Our 76-bed NICU provides the highest level of care as designated by The State of Florida and American Academy of Pediatrics. A Level IV NICU can provide the most complex level of neonatal care including surgical repair of congenital or acquired conditions and immediate on-site access to pediatric medical and surgical subspecialists and pediatric anesthesiologists. A highly skilled and experienced nursing team and physicians board-certified in neonatology provide care around the clock 24/7 for premature newborns and those born with conditions requiring special care.
The unit is busy; more than 800 infants a year are admitted and stay anywhere from several days to four or five months, depending on their medical condition. The types of medical challenges treated in the unit include:
- Pre-term birth as young as babies born at 23 weeks gestation and weighing less than 1 lb.
- Babies born with an infection
- Babies who are stressed during birth and need more attention than in the newborn nursery
- Babies born with a congenital anomaly such as spina bifida, bowel conditions and heart defects
- Babies that require a higher level of care than given in traditional Mother/Baby units.
- Babies who need "cooling" for diagnosis of Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy.
- BayCare Kids Neonatal Developmental and Progressive Care Clinic for follow up for babies at risk for developmental delays.
Features and Amenities
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Private RoomsOur NICU rooms are built to be a peaceful healing place to promote family bonding. Parents have a private area within their baby's room to sleep, shower or watch TV. Each room has beautiful window views to enhance the coziness.
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High-risk maternity unit
Dedicated to women who require hospital bed rest during any phase of their pregnancy. We’re one of the only hospitals in Tampa Bay with a high-risk maternity unit.
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Breast milk donor programIf mom can’t provide her own milk, BayCare has a breast milk donor program that provides nutritious human breast milk to babies in the NICU.
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Respiratory careWe have a respiratory team that specializes in infants and newborns. They’re trained to handle the care of respiratory-compromised premature babies.
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Hearing and developmental assessmentsPremature babies always receive a hearing and developmental assessment to determine whether they need additional services, such as rehabilitation, before they go home. Should developmental or medical follow up be required, your baby’s care team will make a plan before discharge.
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Coordinated careOur NICU team updates and discusses care with the families every day that their baby is in our care.
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Support groupsOur NICU support group knows that having a baby in the NICU can often be scary and overwhelming. While the focus in on your baby, we strongly encourage you to care for yourself. Coming to a support group is a great way to start; it’s open to all families who have a baby in the NICU. This is a time for you to talk with other families who are in similar situations. You can get the support you need and deserve.
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EducationWe will provide you with a NICU book to help you get oriented to the NICU and introduce you to the roles of the health care team, explain basic NICU terminology and identify your expectations while your baby is here. We importance of handwashing with our patients Parents/Caregivers. We also provide a discharge class when baby is ready to go home which covers what to expect when taking baby home, a review of CPR, things to report to your pediatrician and prevention of illness.
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AngelEyeWe offer continuous secure streaming of your baby so mothers and family members designated by mothers can view the baby from your personal device any time to see your infant and feel connected when you can't physically be together. Nurse will also send one-way update messages to the mother through the AngelEye secure website. This is made possible by the St Joseph’s Hospital Foundation.
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Discharge classOur discharge class is designed to help caregivers feel ready to take baby home. In this class, caregivers practice baby skills such as diapering, and then complete CPR. This class is also an opportunity for one-on-one attention where caregivers can have the opportunity for questions and answers.
