Richard & Kimberly McFillan with baby Maggie in the St. Mary neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)
St. Mary’s newly renovated, state-of-the-art NICU features private bays, a private lactation room, and a family sleeping room, all designed to meet the needs of families with babies requiring special care – such as those born preterm, critically ill babies, and those with congenital conditions requiring specialized treatment. St. Mary is the only hospital delivering babies in Lower Bucks County. About 2400 babies are born annually at St. Mary and about 5.5% of those infants require critical care in the NICU.
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Caring for the At-Risk Infant
Tiniest patients receive the most specialized treatment
“Is my baby okay?” That is a question every mother asks in the delivery room. When the answer is no, a happy experience turns to dread. Then comes the rush of questions; does St. Mary Medical Center have the specialized technology to care for my baby? Is the staff trained for infant care? How will I be able to care for my infant? Is there help for me and my family? Fortunately for those parents, the answers to those questions are yes, yes, yes, and yes. St. Mary Medical Center is fully prepared to care for those at-risk infants, especially now with its newly expanded neonatal unit.
For more than twenty-five years, St. Mary Medical Center has been addressing the needs of its tiniest patients who require specialized treatment. The neonatal unit serves newborns who have congenital conditions, are preterm, or are critically ill. The unit is staffed by expert nurses such as Sue Hawkins and Andrea Bernardo who have a combined number of 54 years of nursing experience between them. But the space was outdated and small. More space was needed to provide privacy for families. In October of 2014 construction began on an expanded and renovated six bay unit.
In May of 2015 the newly expanded NICU, with state of the art technology in a sophisticated facility opened for business.
Three months later, an exciting announcement was made – a partnership with Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Now CHOP neonatologists and pediatricians are available on a 24/7 basis, along with SMMC’s team of medical professionals, to provide the highest quality care for the most fragile of SMMC’s patient population.
Learn more about CHOP partnership
This is a win-win partnership for everyone involved, CHOP, SMMC, and most importantly, for the infants who need specialized care, and their parents who love them. The new NICU is the platform which is making all good things happen.
Marie Schickler is the Nursing Director whose area of expertise is neonatal care. “For approximately two years I surveyed local hospitals in the area,” Marie said. “I visited CHOP, Christiana and Princeton Hospitals, and that exposure broadened my understanding of what we could hope to achieve with our NICU.”
NICU private family room
One aspect of the new NICU is the family room. According to Marie, this room is essential in helping the family transition from hospital care to home care for the infant. “Even if mom is already a parent, she may not have experience with caring for a premature infant or a child requiring specialized treatments,” she said. “The family room makes available the total support and expertise of the nursing staff. The moms may have to be reeducated on proper breast feeding techniques. It also gives us an opportunity to assess mom, is she interacting comfortably with the baby, and does she need additional support?”
Sue Hawkins has been an RN in the Labor Room since 1986. “I have never worked anywhere else, nor have I wanted to leave because I love what I do here,” Sue said. “I’ve met so many couples at this very special time in their lives, and I believe our team has helped them. Besides, I have had the pleasure of seeing all eight grandchildren being born here at St. Mary.”
“Our patients now have private lactation rooms, private bays, a separate sleeping room, – all important components for helping parents and families bond with their children,” she said. “Previously, babies would have been separated from their moms for several hours or more, which to a new and anxious mom, would seem like an eternity.”
Andrea Bernardo echoes Sue’s observations. Andrea has been a nurse at SMMC for approximately 25 years. “It is so important for the family unit to now have this family focused space. When mom can spend more time with her baby, that helps to build up her confidence,” Andrea said. “When you are caring for a NICU baby, you are really caring for the whole family. Siblings previously were not allowed to visit, but now siblings three years or older are welcomed into the unit, as well as extended family, such as aunts and uncles.” Some babies require more complex care than what may be available at SMMC. “That is when our partnership with CHOP comes into play,” Andrea said. “That affiliation extends our medical care.”
Andrea is proud to be in a profession that takes care of a baby with complex needs and to be working in a facility that addresses those needs. “We have state of the art equipment, a highly skilled team of doctors and nurses, and training to keep abreast of the latest advances in medicine,” she said. “When it is time for mom and baby to leave the hospital, I carry the baby out to the car because I see that as completing my role. Now the baby is healthy enough to go home with its family, and I have to admit that there are tears of joy from all of us,” she said.
No article about the NICU would be complete without including the focus of the unit, babies and their mothers who have been patients. Kimberly McFillin gave birth to Richard in April 2014 when he was just at 35 weeks. Richard experienced breathing difficulties and had trouble learning to feed so he was placed immediately in what was the old NICU.
“I was so upset,” Kimberly remembers. “Seeing your baby with all kinds of tubes in his body, not being able to hold him or touch him the way you instinctively want to do, was very difficult. My son John who was five at the time was not allowed to see his new brother. He could only stand outside the windowed area to peek in on Richard.” The staff helped Kimberly and her husband Richard at the outset. “They became our second family,” Kimberly said. “The doctors and nurses comforted us, answered our questions, and helped us cope with this very emotional time.”
In July of 2015 Magdalene made her entrance into the world at 31 weeks, weighing only four pounds, one ounce. “With her birth, we were patients in the new NICU, and the biggest difference I noticed immediately was that we had privacy,” Kimberly said. “Each baby had her own room, and I could breast feed comfortably.” The McFillins with son John would visit their baby daily, but this time John was allowed to come into the room. Other family members came to call also. “I cannot emphasize enough what a difference this change of policy made for us,” Kimberly said. “The entire family could bond with the baby.”
When the time came to take Magdalene home, Kimberly remembers her tears. “I was happy to be taking our baby home so there were tears of joy,” she said, “but I was sad to be leaving this nursing staff. There are not enough words to express our gratitude to the hospital, the new NICU for the compassion and care given to us from doctors and loving staff.”
The St. Mary Foundation continues to raise funds for this very special area. Marie Schickler said, “We value the partnership between the community, the foundation and our staff. Donors can come into our unit and see their investment at work. Plus they can see the next phase of construction going on in the Labor & Delivery Unit while we continue to grow and address the needs of our youngest patients.”
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