NICU
The neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) provides critical care to newborns who are ill or premature. Many factors may lead to a newborn being admitted to the NICU, including low birth weight or complications during delivery. The NICU staff works closely with parents to develop a treatment plan for their newborn.
Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in Brandon, Florida
When your baby requires an extra level of care, you need a compassionate team that can provide specialized neonatal services.
HCA Florida Brandon Hospital is home to a Level III NICU that provides a healing environment for babies born prematurely or with health complications. At our Level III NICU, neonatologists and maternal-fetal medicine specialists are on-site 24/7. We practice family-centered care by working together with you to provide your baby the love and support they need to get well.
Related Specialties
Learn more about our related specialties
Our Level III NICU
Our 36-bed NICU offers specialty medical equipment and advanced care. The NICU team is available 24/7 to care for infants who need additional support after labor and delivery.
Features of our NICU
We offer the following services in our NICU:
- Private rooms
- Specialized infant beds designed to transform from an incubator to a crib as your child grows and gains strength
- Ventilator breathing support including conventional mechanical ventilation and high frequency oscillatory ventilation
- In-house breastfeeding support
- Exclusive human milk diet
- NICU/neonatal nutritionist
- NICU respiratory therapists
- NICU pharmacist
- NICU speech therapist
- NICU occupational therapist
- Whole body cooling therapy
Pediatric subspecialty services
We offer the following services in our NICU:
- Pediatric anesthesia services
- Pediatric cardiology services
- Pediatric endocrinology services
- Pediatric gastroenterology services
- Pediatric general surgery services
- Pediatric genetics
- Pediatric hematology/oncology
- Pediatric infectious disease services
- Pediatric nephrology
- Pediatric ophthalmology services, specializing in retinopathy of prematurity
- Pediatric orthopedics services
- Pediatric otolaryngology (ENT) services
- Pediatric pulmonology services
- Pediatric radiology services
- Pediatric urology services
Neonatal surgical services
Infants requiring surgical care are in the hands of our pediatric surgeons with years of experience performing surgery on our smallest patients. We have specialty pediatric physicians in the following areas:
- Ear, nose and throat surgery
- Gastrointestinal surgery
- General surgery
- Pulmonary surgery
- Thoracic surgery
Visiting the NICU
We know this is a special time of bonding between you and your baby. We've set up the guidelines below to provide your baby with a safe, healing environment.
When to visit the NICU
A detailed visitation record is kept in your child's chart that you will sign to ensure only approved individuals are visiting your child.
Parents and grandparents may visit at any time, except during the change in nursing shifts (every day from 6:45am - 8:00am and 6:45pm - 8:00pm). You may be asked to leave the nursery during a stressful time for another baby sharing your infant's room or when a new patient is being admitted.
Parents and grandparents may practice open visitation, but we ask that no more than two people are present at the bedside at a time. Grandparents may visit on their own with written consent from the parents. Siblings may also visit if their immunization record is up to date.
It is important that all NICU visitors are in good health. Visitors who are sick or who have recently been exposed to an illness, such as chickenpox, measles or a strep infection, are asked not to visit to protect the health of all babies in the NICU.
Patient safety and privacy
In addition to providing advanced care to your newborn, one of our primary goals is maintaining your child's safety. To protect the privacy of every child in our care, we ask that you visit only at your child's bedside.
The staff in our NICU will keep you informed about your baby's condition and progress when you visit your baby in-person or over the phone. Information about a child's condition will only be provided by telephone directly to parents.
A special mom’s journey
Meet Wimauma mother, Feve Coronado and hear her story. At close to 16 weeks, Feve learned she had lost her amniotic fluid during a routine ultrasound.
The family traveled more than 50 miles roundtrip for prenatal visits at Brandon Hospital's Maternal Fetal Medicine department and to ensure their baby would be born with immediate access to the Level 3 neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Brandon Hospital.
After an extended inpatient stay at HCA Florida Brandon Hospital, Amaris Lourdes Arredondo was born at 31 weeks. She was just two pounds, 15 ounces. She is a blessing to Feve and Jose, a true miracle baby.
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