Unit name

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)

Patient population

Neonates – Premature & High-Risk (Level 2-3 patient acuity level)

Mixed gender

Hours of operation

24 hours/ 7 days per week

Number of beds

40

Occupancy Rate

100%

Staff categories

Registered Nurse

Unit Assistant (Ward Clerk/Interpreter)

Patient Care Technician

Primary patient diagnoses

Term & preterm infants from 24-weeks gestation (500g) requiring ventilation, administration of surfactant, Inotropes, Nitric oxide.

Neonates with a variety of cardiac conditions and other congenital anomalies, respiratory distress syndrome, persistent pulmonary hypertension, transient tachypnea, broncho-pulmonary dysplasia, meconium aspiration, sepsis, apnea, inborn errors of metabolism, narcotizing enterocolitis, jaundice, asphyxia, birth traumas, pre and post surgeries.

Procedures

• Routine and Emergency Patient Care
• Physical assessment and gestational age determination
• Invasive monitoring – UAC, UVC, CV and radial artery lines
• Non-invasive cardiac, respiratory, BP & oxygen saturation monitoring
• Ventilation (regular and oscillatory)
• Maintenance of neutral thermal zone
• IV Therapy, TPN, Lipid, blood and blood product administration
• Blood sampling (capillary, venous, arterial)
• Calculation of medication dosages by body weight
• Calculation of intake and output by body weight
• Phototherapy, Isolation procedures
• Exchange Transfusions
• Lumbar punctures
• Chest tube insertion and management
• Oxygen administration
• Nasogastric lavage and gavage
• Unit dose medication administration
• Work-up for chromosomal, genetic, metabolic disorders, etc
• Promotion of Breastfeeding
• Falls Prevention Programme
• Wound, Skin Care, Pressure Ulcer Prevention
• Pain Management
• Quadramed Electronic Medical Records
• Family Education

Nursing care Delivery system

Total Patient Care in a Partnership Model