NICU

Neonatal Intensive Care Units

We have Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) at Salmon Creek Medical Center and The Children's Hospital at Legacy Emanuel. When a newborn baby has special needs, the medical and nursing staff at these units rise to the challenge with their remarkable training, expertise, and compassion.

A special place

The thoughtful layout of each NICU features parent rooms for private, quiet time allowing you to breast feed, take a break or stay overnight when preparing for your baby's discharge. Special play and activity rooms are available for young patients and their siblings and a comfortable family lounge is available for other family members.

Following your baby's progress

• Due to federal law, we can only release information to parents, so please have friends and relatives contact you for updates.
• To keep our phone lines open for your calls, please ask friends to call you at home rather than on the unit.
• We invite you to read your baby's medical chart and ask the bedside nurse or physician if you have questions. You'll also receive a Parent Chart for recording your baby's progress.  

Visiting guidelines

• Parents may visit any time. If possible, please avoid visiting during shift changes (7-8 a.m. and 7-8 p.m.) because nurses use this time to exchange important patient information.
• Parents may designate other family members or friends who may visit when they're not present.
• Three people may be present at the bedside at any given time. Exceptions may be made during religious ceremonies or when special procedures, treatments or evaluations occur.
• For your baby's protection, handwashing is required of all visitors prior to entering the unit. A special scrub area is located just outside the main family entrance of the unit.
• We require that siblings be with an adult at all times, both in the unit and when using the family lounge.
• Family members and guests must be free of illness when visiting, as babies are very susceptible to infections.

• Please respect the privacy of other patients and their families, especially when taking photographs or video of your newborn. Our staff cannot answer questions about other babies or families in the unit.

Other Legacy resources

• Our Clinical Resource Coordinator can help with housing, finding community resources and arranging for financial assistance. Just ask.
• Parents Supporting Parents is a support group of families with experience in having an infant in intensive care. Ask your nurse for information.
• Centers for Maternal-Fetal Medicine - If you're an expectant mother with questions about your pregnancy, the Centers provide everything you need in one location and closely coordinate their services with the NICU.