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Why Choose Us
Why Choose MedStar Georgetown University Hospital for Neonatal Intensive Care?
The NICU and Perinatal Center at MedStar Georgetown is recognized as the only Level IV NICU with a birthing center in the District. This designation means that we provide the highest level of family-centered care--complete with advanced surgical treatments, transport capabilities, and outreach education.
Comprehensive Care
Our NICU’s team works closely with obstetricians, maternal fetal medicine specialists, and pediatric medical and surgical specialists throughout MedStar Georgetown, allowing for truly comprehensive care.
We believe in the importance of providing babies and mothers with an uninterrupted continuum of care, spanning from before pregnancy to follow-up care in the months after delivery. You can find all of the services you need right here at MedStar Georgetown. Our seamless system allows your entire medical team to collaborate and consult with each other, reducing stress for you and your family and providing you and your baby with the best possible care.
Expert Care—for All of Your Baby’s Needs
Whatever care your infant needs, our multidisciplinary team is equipped to help.
The NICU team includes:
- Neonatologists
- Neonatal fellows
- Neonatal residents
- Neonatal nurse practitioners/physician assistants
- Magnet® recognized neonatal registered nurses
- Respiratory therapist
- Occupational therapist, physical therapist, and speech therapist
- Dietician
- Lactation consultant
- Psychologist
- Case manager
- Social worker
- Family support specialist
- Spiritual support
Family-centered approach
In a family-centered approach, the medical team and support staff are available to help families during their NICU stay. We believe that you are an integral part of the care team and should be supported and educated throughout your time with us. For this reason, we will always encourage you to participate in your baby's care to the greatest extent you are comfortable to do so.
Because we understand how stressful it can be to have an infant requiring NICU care, we provide many resources to help you. The NICU has many family support services including:
- Occupational, physical, and speech therapists who can work with you on oral feeding, positioning and movement, and other developmental needs your baby might have.
- Lactation consultants who can assist with breastfeeding and pumping.
- Psychologists who can provide you with free, brief interventions, assessments, and referrals in the NICU. We understand that families with babies in the NICU can experience a high amount of stress. We have a psychologist on site to provide psychosocial support.
- A social worker who is assigned to every family upon admission to the NICU. Social workers can help you with the stresses, plans, and decisions associated with your baby’s hospitalization, including guidance on practical and financial matters and assist case managers with discharge planning.
- A family support specialist who can provide you with resources and education to meet your unique emotional needs as parents and/or caregivers in the NICU.
- Spiritual support, including a hospital chaplain, are available during routine visits to the NICU and for your spiritual/religious care and emotional support. At your request, your nurse can also contact leaders of other faiths who are affiliated with the Hospital. In addition, you are welcome to bring religious leaders in from your own spiritual community to provide support.
Comprehensive NICU Family Center
The newly renovated NICU is one of the most comprehensive family spaces in the greater Washington, D.C., metropolitan region.
The Michael Smith Liss and Lauren Lamb and Lauren Elizabeth Lamb NICU Family Support Center includes:
- The Ryan and Angelina Freedman Family Lounge
- The Leon Smith Liss and Maddox Smith Liss Sibling Play Room
- The Alexandria Smith Lipp and Jordan Lipp Refreshment Center
- The Smith-Kogod Family Parents and Infant Sleep Room and the Wrasse Family Foundation Parent and Infant Sleep Room
- The Michelle Smith and Stacy Smith Liss Location Room
These areas will allow your family the opportunity to find a calm moment and connect with other families going through similar experiences. We also provide two rooming-in facilities for parents/caregivers of NICU infants before discharge, as well as for parents/caregivers taking their infants home on medical equipment and medication.
Designated Baby-Friendly Hospital
MedStar Georgetown was the first hospital in the District to be designated a certified Baby-Friendly Hospital as recognized by the D.C. Breastfeeding Coalition. Full-service breastfeeding support including counseling, education, evidence-based management, and access to purchasing and rental of breastfeeding equipment is available for you in our NICU. We also provide pasteurized donor breast milk for mothers who have not yet produced their own milk.
Specialty and Follow-Up Services
The MedStar Georgetown NICU and Perinatal Center is committed to helping your infant leave the NICU healthy—and remain healthy in the months and years to come. MedStar Georgetown offers a range of specialty centers and follow-up services. These include a Neonatal Follow-up Clinic, Developmental Evaluation Clinic (DEC), medical and surgical subspecialty clinics, and an Aerodigestive Clinic.
At the Forefront of Training and Research
Our team is passionate about caring for the most vulnerable infants—both those under our care today, and those who will be born in years to come.
MedStar Georgetown is a leader in neonatal training and research. We have an active research program that contributes to the advancement of knowledge in caring for sick infants. Our Neonatal Perinatal Medicine Fellowship Training Program offers subspecialty training for future neonatologists, and our Neonatal Resuscitation Training Program (NRTP) is a training center for physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals throughout the region
NICU Patient and Family Advisory Council for Quality and Safety (PFACQS)
Central to our commitment of family-centered care, the NICU PFACQS is an advisory group made up of family members of former NICU parents as well as current NICU staff, all of whom play an important part in helping the NICU continuously improve. In this way, the group aims to promote quality, safety, and efficiency, and achieve the highest standards of family-centered care.
- Promoting patient and family advocacy and involvement;
- Providing feedback that addresses patient safety, quality of care, and/or patient service issues;
- Strengthening communication and collaboration among patients, families and other caregivers, professional staff, and associates;
- Facilitating information sharing between MedStar Georgetown NICU and the patients, families, and community it serves;
- Helping to establish organizational priorities in response to patient, family, and community needs.
To learn more about the NICU PFACQS, please contact Marta Pernas, Bennett D. Raak Family Support Specialist, at 202-444-1653.
