Doernbecher neonatal Care Center Give Vulnerable PatientS The

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“I can’t put into words what we went through in the
first few weeks,” said Heidi. “Kory had collapsed
lungs and had a tube inserted in his chest seven times.
Kaden had heart and hernia surgeries.” Both boys
also endured eye surgeries and numerous infections.
Like many premature babies, the twins were also at
risk for later complications. “We were told Kaden and
Kory had an 85 to 90 percent chance of developing
cerebral palsy, but the boys are 18 months old now
and doing fine,” Heidi said.
Helping the most vulnerable patients
A normal pregnancy lasts 38 to 42 weeks, but
premature babies are born at 37 weeks or younger.
While the average U.S. newborn weighs seven and a
half pounds, babies with low birth weight, a common
condition for “preemies,” tip the scales at just three
pounds, five ounces. Infants with extremely low birth
weight are no more than two pounds, three ounces –
Kaden and Kory’s size. These “micropreemies” enter
the world up to three months before their lungs,
brains and other systems are ready.
Kaden and Kory under the care of the DNCC staff.
Specialized care, high-tech equipment
The DNCC’s mission includes keeping babies
warm – preemies lack sufficient fat to regulate body
temperature – limiting stress on their immature
systems, preventing infection and treating medical
conditions. Doernbecher delivers “the highest
possible level of critical care,” said H. Stacy Nicholson,
M.D., M.P.H., F.A.A.P., Physician-in-Chief at OHSU
Doernbecher Children’s Hospital and Credit Unions
for Kids Professor and Chair of the Department of
Pediatrics in the OHSU School of Medicine.
The DNCC is a Level 3 neonatal care center,
equipped to care for babies who are extremely
premature, critically ill or in need of specialized
surgery. These tiny patients include infants with
conditions such as heart disease or spina bifida.
“The level of specialty care is a really unique feature,”
said Dr. Nicholson. “We’re prepared to help all
children who need it.”
Intensive care units for newborns date to the
1950s and 1960s. Doernbecher established the
DNCC’s predecessor, a neonatal nursery, in 1951
and opened a full-fledged NICU in 1968. Portland
pediatrician S. Gorham “Gorie” Babson, M.D.,
was the hospital’s first neonatologist. Dr. Babson
died in Sept. 2010, but his legacy continues in the
advanced, compassionate care the DNCC delivers.
“He was a real pioneer in neonatology,” said Dr.
Nicholson. “This unit has a tremendous history
and bright future.”
Today, Doernbecher’s neonatal team includes
six board-certified neonatologists, doctors who
specialize in the care of newborn babies. Each
is also an expert in a subspecialty such as infant
lung or brain development. A physician assistant,
four board-certified neonatal nurse practitioners
and nearly 120 nurses also care for Doernbecher’s
tiniest patients.
Providing cutting-edge neonatal care requires highly
specialized equipment. For example, to meet a