Gosnell Family Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)

Part of Strong Memorial Hospital

Our Gosnell Family Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is the only one of its kind in the Finger Lakes Region. It's a highly specialized, nationally recognized center providing the highest level of care available for sick or premature newborns (Level IV), including advanced treatment for respiratory failure, heart disease, and neurologic injury.

Every year, we care for more than 1,200 newborns in our NICU. Most babies admitted to our NICU are born at Strong Memorial Hospital as part of our Regional Perinatal Center high-risk obstetrical service. However, about 250 newborns are transferred to us annually, from 17 referral hospitals, nearly all by our Neonatal Transport team.

For Parents

Navigating the NICU

What to Expect

Our new NICU includes 44 private beds in the Golisano Children's Hospital tower and 24 beds in the Wegman's Strong Memorial Hospital Nursery, which are also predominately single family spaces. Our new 8-bed, transitional care nursery, located near the Strong Beginnings Birth Center, focuses on care for babies who need intense observation and monitoring, and whose mothers are also inpatient. The private rooms allow for more space, support infection control and enable parents to actively participate in their child's care.

The NICU and the Wegman's Strong Memorial Hospital Nursery are designed and staffed to provide superior medical and developmental care for our newborns, and communication and support for parents.

• We can choose the bed, warmer, incubator or crib that is just right to support your baby.
• Nearly every test can be performed right at your baby's bedside, including digital x-rays, ultrasounds and EEGs. This reduces stress for our babies and speeds response times. The test results are available online to doctors in other parts of the hospital or from home.
• Because premature and sick newborns can be hypersensitive to the environment outside the womb, we work to provide a secure and soothing atmosphere to minimize stress and help your baby to cope better and grow faster.
  • Lights are subdued and bedside activity is minimized during "infant quiet times" from 1–6 a.m., 10–10:30 a.m., and 3:30–5:00 p.m.
  • Special design techniques have been used to reduce noise levels overall, and a special 8 bed room has been specially developed to provide a soothing environment for the most sensitive infants.
  • We support kangaroo care—skin-to-skin contact between parent and child—to help calm your baby and improve his or her sleeping patterns when he or she is stable enough and can tolerate being touched.
• Laptop computers allow doctors to review electronic medical records and tests, compare them to gage your baby's progress and share them with you right at your baby's bedside.
• A private family room is a convenient location for you to conference with your baby's team. Three breastfeeding/nesting rooms provide for privacy in feeding or breast pumping in a quiet environment. Breast pumps are available in every room.
• In addition to the full complement of doctors, physicians assistants, and nurses, our NICU is fortunate to have respiratory therapists, nutritionists, lactation consultants, a child life developmental expert, and social workers, all of whom are wholly dedicated to the unit.
• All members of your baby's team are especially attuned to meeting his or her special emotional, behavioral and developmental needs. Our goal is to help your baby continue the normal brain development that occurs prior to birth in the most natural way possible. By paying close attention to your baby's "signals" we can help your newborn develop new abilities, maximize comfort, and ensure proper bonding with you.
• Two Ronald McDonald Houses, one within the hospital, are available to accommodate parents during their baby's time in the NICU.
• A special discharge team meets frequently to discuss each baby's continuing needs before being discharged (discharge planning). Various members of our team will help you with all the details. This may include:
  • Transporting your baby to a hospital closer to your home, if your baby isn't quite ready to leave the hospital
  • Follow-up appointments and insurance
  • Home care help, and special equipment for your home
  • Information on how to handle issues that might arise with your baby