The long-awaited Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Alberta Children’s Hospital is now open.
While the unit officially opened Tuesday morning, the project was first announced back in January of 2012. The 14-bed unit will begin treating patients on February 26.
The new unit is located in a previously shelled space on the fourth floor of the Alberta Children’s Hospital. It will provide Level 3 NICU care, which handles babies considered most critically ill.
“These new beds will improve care, reduce patient transfers and provide better access to specialists and increase our capacity to care for critically-ill newborns,” says Health Minister Fred Horne. “These beds will also ensure that families are able to remain closer together during these critical times in a newborn’s life.”
The new beds will also mean less travel between hospitals for infants with complex condition or who may require surgery.
The total cost of the project was $10.9-million; $5-million came from community donors.
There are a total of 291 NICU beds in the province.
Comments