Week Three: Coming Full Circle

Zoey B -

Hey everyone! I’m so excited to discuss my week with you all. This week was extremely special to me because I was able to have an interview with a registered nurse (RN) that cared for me when I was in the N.I.C.U. This nurse has worked in the N.I.C.U. for almost 30 years and was able to give me insight into how technology has changed over the years. She said the biggest improvement for nurses specifically has been the change from paper charting to digital charts. This allows doctors and nurses to easily exchange information and update small changes with ease. I was also able to ask her questions about what has changed in the N.I.C.U. since I was there. They have changed the environment in the N.I.C.U. in the very low birth weight room to simulate the womb. This room has very low lighting, requires nurses and families to speak softly to protect the babies’ sleep, and encourages nurses to be more hands-off whenever able. The other interesting advancement she was able to tell me about was the giraffe isolette. This was designed by someone at the N.I.C.U. that she works at. This isolette is special because it is able to open from the top for nurses to easily access the baby without having to transfer the baby from an isolette to an open bed warmer and back again. This allows the baby to be moved less often and endure less stress. An example of this type of isolette is pictured below:

Preemie using Giraffe Isolette Incubator
Pictured: Giraffe isolette mentioned in interview with N.I.C.U. RN.

At my internship, I was able to see the baby from last week getting set up to go home. I wasn’t able to see him being discharged, but I was able to talk with the nurses about why he was able to go home early. He was eating enough and was reacting well to the photo-therapy treatment that he needed to reduce his bilirubin levels.

I also had an interview with a mom that had a premature baby in 2023. This interview was very insightful into how technology has changed in a larger N.I.C.U. Because he stayed in a larger N.I.C.U. than we have here, I was able to compare the technology between our N.I.C.U. and the one they stayed in. I was able to also see how the CPAP mask is used in the photos she showed me. I was also able to compare the photo therapy he received in a larger N.I.C.U. to the photo therapy the baby received in the CCN here. The baby here was rolled in a light purple blanket to receive treatment, whereas this baby was in an isolette and received photo therapy from above, as pictured below:

Preemie using photo therapy technology
Example of photo therapy used to lower Bilirubin levels in preemies.

All Pictures are posted with permission.

 

 

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Comments:

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    jussynda_b
    Ooh. Very interesting. Have you talked with any other parents or worked on the mental health component yet?
    March 5, 2025 at 11:55 am - Reply
    zoey_b
    Yes! I am almost finished with the interviews I have scheduled and have been compiling data from them. The mental health component is a little more challenging to prove than I was expecting, but I still need to conduct more interviews with N.I.C.U. nurses before I can compile results.
    March 6, 2025 at 1:17 pm - Reply
    moorea_c
    What an amazing experience to be able to interview an RN that took care of you! I'm happy you've been getting such good information from all of your interviews and that you've been able to compare the treatments from years past to now. Are there benefits to receiving the photo therapy from above vs the baby that was rolled in a blanket?
    March 9, 2025 at 4:32 pm - Reply
    james_pi
    This is so cool Zoey! Being able to interview the very own nurse who cared for you must have been a crazy experience, it's really cool you were able to do that. It's really interesting seeing all the technology involved in the N.I.C.U. especially the giraffe isolette, and it seems like N.I.C.U. technology will keep getting better, so that's exciting to see!
    March 11, 2025 at 6:54 am - Reply
    Zoey
    Not that I know of. I believe the baby received the photo therapy from above because he was in an incubator and could not be rolled in a blanket at the same time.
    March 11, 2025 at 9:21 pm - Reply

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