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Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Transfer and Discharge Instructions
Patient Transfer
Because the NICU at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital is a regional referral center, many babies or mothers are transferred here from area hospitals prior to delivery for specialized medical or surgical care. Once an infant has shown appropriate recovery and is no longer in need of our specialized services, he or she is transferred via ambulance with a highly experienced neonatal transport team to either the referral hospital or a hospital close to home. At that hospital, the baby's recuperation can continue and the routine care of the growing infant can be well managed.
By having their baby cared for closer to home, parents can spend more time with their newborn, feeding and caring for him or her, and thus allowing the relationship between them to flourish. Not only does this policy support our family-centered care philosophy, but it also insures that beds will be available for future critically ill infants whose survival requires the medical and or surgical expertise available at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital.
Discharge
When an infant is ready to be discharged home, there are a number of things to keep in mind:
General Pediatric Care
All infants and children need a general pediatrician who will insure that all of their health needs are being addressed. A good source for locating pediatricians close to where a family lives is through recommendations from friends and family members. The mother's obstetrician's office and the NICU social workers are also good resources for pediatricians. Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital has a number of General Pediatric Clinics in the area around the Hospital and may be an ideal option for those who live in close proximity to the Hospital.
The baby's future pediatrician should be contacted prior to discharge from the NICU. This will allow the doctor to become more familiar with the child and family prior to the first visit. In addition, upon leaving the NICU, families are given a discharge summary of their baby's hospital course to be given to the pediatrician. Ideally, all infants should have their first pediatrician visit within 3 to5 days of discharge from the NICU.
Neonatal Follow-up Program
The Neonatal Follow-Up Program at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital was founded in 1971 by Drs. John and Yvonne Driscoll. The program's mission is to provide consultative developmental services for at-risk NICU graduates of Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital and its network hospitals. We offer specialized testing to evaluate a child's development and, when necessary, suggest interventions to address any identified delays. Early detection and close monitoring of a child’s developmental progress will enable us to maximize the child's overall potential.
The Neonatal Follow-up Program is comprised of neonatologists, a developmental psychologist and a program coordinator, who may meet with the family one to two weeks before their baby goes home in order to introduce them to the program and to schedule the baby's first appointment. The Neonatal Follow-up Program can be reached at (212) 305-6350.
Other Specialty Appointments
Depending on a child's needs, there may be follow-up appointments with other specialty medical or surgical teams after a child leaves the NICU. These may include one or more of the following: ophthalmology, pediatric surgery, pediatric cardiology, neurology, gastroenterology, feeding/nutrition, genetics, and physical/occupational/feeding therapy. NICU physicians will discuss the specialty follow-up care a baby might require after discharge with the parents.
Visiting Nurse Services (VNS)
Most infants can receive one or two home visits by the visiting nurse service in their respective regions. This visit is timed for the few days after discharge from the hospital and is intended to ease the transition from hospital to home. NICU social workers assist the family in scheduling the VNS visit.
