The renovation of the Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation Newborn Intensive Care Unit (Smith Family NICU) helped transform the previously open ward into one of the first in the world to feature a hybrid design suited to babies’ developmental needs, with private and semi-private patient rooms, as well as open bays for small groups of infants. In addition to enabling expert care, the Smith Family NICU also serves as a living lab, informing research into new approaches for the serious problems premature babies can face at birth and in the years that follow.
Critically ill newborns often spend their first weeks—or even months—in the Smith Family NICU. Following their discharge from the Smith Family NICU, many of these babies will require special ongoing care to monitor and address developmental challenges. At the hospital’s Center for Child Development (CCD), these tiny patients and their families receive the expert care and support they need. The CCD provides a comprehensive, team-based approach to outpatient care for at-risk infants and toddlers. Focusing on each child’s unique medical needs, the center also helps parents learn how to continue care at home. In addition, the CCD is dedicated to research, with our child development experts studying each child’s short-term and long-term outcomes from conception to kindergarten as they seek to improve care for medically fragile infants here at the Brigham and far beyond.
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You can make an impact on our mission. Contact Sue Ramsey, assistant vice president of development, at swramsey@bwh.harvard.edu or 617-424-4223.
