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Woman's Hospital NICU

Hospitals nationwide are catering to patients by increasing the size of their rooms and the amenities they offer. Woman's Hospital in Baton Rouge, which delivers more babies than any other facility in Louisiana, has taken the trend a step further by enlarging the accommodations for newborns and infants.

The Woman's Center for Newborn and Infant Care has expanded its Special Care Nursery to 33,000 square feet that accommodates 82 beds. The Special Care Nursery is reserved for newborns that need special care but who are not critically ill

"We're now looking at each baby having eight to 10 feet of its own space," Woman's Hospital spokeswoman Jodi Conachen said.

In addition to more space, the nursery will feature sound-absorbing materials in the walls, giving babies and their families more privacy, Conachen said. At the same time, caregivers retain quick and easy access to their charges.

"It's part of the trend of customizing care. We wouldn't think of putting four adults in an eight- to 10-foot space and them remain sane," Conachen said.

Now babies and their families will receive the same consideration.

The $4.8 million project combines state-of-the art technology with a more private, uplifting environment, with the bright "under-the-sea" color scheme parents might choose for their nurseries at home.

The Special Care Nursery's features include a family waiting area, a children's play area, a submarine with a periscope in the waiting room, and multiple glass windows that provide natural lighting.

Infants are provided with the optimum environment for recovery and parents are made an integral part of that recovery, Conachen said.

In addition to the Special Care Nursery, the Woman's Center for Newborn and Infant Care includes the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which treats the most critically ill newborns and infants; the Developmental Nursery, which houses babies up to one year old; and the Infant Care Center, reserved for newborns and infants that have been re-admitted to the hospital for special care or surgery.

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