Coming Home from the Hospital with Your Premature Baby
When Can I Take My Preemie Home From the NICU?
Parents often want to know when they can take their preemie home from the NICU. Babies will usually stay in the NICU until about the time they were originally due to be born, but some babies will have shorter NICU stays, and other babies will need to be in the NICU for much longer.
Caring for Your Premature Infant at Home
Bringing a premature infant home from the hospital is a joyous experience. Learn the basics of baby care for your preemie, and how caring for a premature infant is different from caring for a full term baby.
Visiting the Doctor With Your Premature Baby
When you bring your premature baby home from the hosptial, you may be surprised by how many doctor visits you need to bring your little one to. The different specialists all have different roles and are all important doctors for premature babies.
Feeding Premature Babies at Home
Feeding premature babies enough breastmilk or formula to ensure good growth is important. Answers questions about preemie feeding including catch up growth, how much a preemie should be eating, how to feed a sleepy preemie, and how to know if your baby needs more milk.
Keeping Your Premature Baby Healthy During Cold and Flu Season
Keeping your premature baby healthy is one of your most important jobs as a parent. There are many things you can do to help keep your baby healthy during cold and flu season.
What to Do When Your Premature Baby is Sick
Advice and information about when to call the doctor when your premature baby seems sick. Also helps parents decide if a symptom is minor or requires immediate medical attention.
FAQs About Car Seat Safety for Premature Infants
Car seat safety is one of the most important ways to protect your premature infant from injury. Preemies may be too small to fit in a car seat correctly without help, and may have trouble breathing in a car seat. These car seat safety tips are designed to keep your premature infant safe.
SIDS Prevention for Premature Babies
Premature infants have an increased risk for SIDS, or sudden infant death syndrome. These simple SIDS prevention tips can help to keep your baby safe during sleep.
What Causes Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)?
Defines sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, and explains what might cause this mysterious and deadly syndrome.
Bringing Your Preemie Home from the NICU
Bringing your preemie home from the NICU is a joyous experience, but it can also be a source of worry. Share your fears and joys about bringing your preemie home from the hospital, and read others' stories about bringing a preemie home. See submissions
Summer Safety for Your Premature Baby
Learn to prevent and manage dehydration, heat stroke, and heat exhaustion in premature babies and other babies and children.
Newborn Screening in the NICU
Newborn screening is a series of tests done for almost all newborn babies. Typical newborn screening programs include a blood test (often called the PKU test ) and a hearing screen . A car seat test may be included for smaller babies. If your baby was in the NICU, the newborn screening may be a little different. The hearing screen may be more thorough because premature babies and other NICU pati…
What is the Car Seat Test for Preemies?
Answers parents' questions about the car seat test for premature or low birth weight babies.
What Is the PKU Test and How Is it Different for Preemies?
Describes the PKU test, or newborn screening test, focusing on how it relates to premature babies and term babies who have been in the NICU.
What is the Newborn Hearing Test and How Is it Different in the NICU?
Defines the newborn hearing test, especially as it relates to premature babies and babies who have spent time in the NICU.
Requesting your Baby’s Medical Records
A quick and easy to follow tip on how to request a copy of your medical records or those of your baby or child.
When Can My Preemie Come Home?
Almost as soon as their babies are admitted to the NICU, parents start to wonder when they will be well enough for discharge. Every baby is different, but there are some general guidelines to help parents predict when they can take their preemies home.
Coming Home from the Hospital: A Father Shares His Experience
Written by Jeff Ewing, author of Preemie Chronicles - Our NICU Experience, this article describes a father's joys and fears as he brings his son home from the NICU.
The First Year
Although it may feel like your preemie will stay in the NICU forever, you will eventually get to take your baby home! Life after NICU dishcarge may seem chaotic at first, but will quickly settle into a routine.
