The UMass Memorial Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU) cares for the region's smallest patients. Located on our Memorial Campus in Worcester and part of our comprehensive Children's Medical Center, our NICU is internationally recognized for its quality care. It is the region's only Level III (highest rating given) NICU for high-risk obstetrical and neonatal care.
It has earned a national reputation for its family centered care philosophy where families are an important part of their child's team.
More than 500 low-birth weight and high-risk infants are cared for annually. We encourage parents to actively participate in the care of their infant, and to join the medical and nursing staff in our daily rounds when we discuss their baby's treatment plans. Every infant is unique, and families are the most important and constant factor in an infant's life. Staff members respect and support the role of family as the primary caregivers for the infant's life.
Nicview
As part of our commitment to providing care that is patient and family centered, we offer the Nicview Webcam System.
Whether you need to be away for a night or would like to show a distant family member or friend the newest addition to your family, it’s now possible to stay connected via Internet connection.
Learn more...
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The physical environment of our NICU improves the survival of critically ill infants and helps babies get better faster by:
- Creating a soothing environment similar to the womb with muted lights and minimized noise
- Promoting parent and child bonding, critical to infant survival
- Providing families and physicians the privacy that is sometimes necessary to manage the most difficult conditions in the Antionette McCabe Family-centered Suite
- Reducing the external stimuli that can be stressors for newborns
- Allowing physicians to perform more surgical procedures right in the NICU rather than in the operating room, minimizing the movement of the child from one environment to another.
This approach to newborn care earned the UMass Memorial NICU benchmark status by the international Vermont Oxford Group, making it a model for other hospital NICUs throughout the world.
Our NICU has 49 beds, including 27 intensive care beds, Our 22-bed Special Care Nursery eases the transition to home as baby's health and well-being improve.
In addition, UMass Memorial has 42 newborn beds as part of its Birthing Center located on a floor below the NICU.
The UMass Memorial NICU is also a training site for residents, neonatal fellows, nurse practitioners and medical students.