Our New NICU More room for the smallest patients
CHKD’s new NICU features a whimsical oak tree in its lobby. Far right: Anna and Nick Glandon bond with their son, Cameron, during his seven-month stay.
After waiting excitedly for the arrival of their first child, Anna and Nick Glandon watched their newborn son, Cameron, struggle to take his first few breaths. Born four weeks early, Cameron was immediately transferred to CHKD’s neonatal intensive care unit. Cameron had persistent pulmonary hypertension, a lifethreatening condition that occurs when the blood vessels in a newborn’s lungs don’t open enough, restricting the amount of oxygen to the brain and organs. The cause of persistent pulmonary hypertension is unknown, but it usually occurs in babies born full term, or at no less than 34 weeks. For four weeks, the Glandons didn’t even get to hear their baby cry, as his breathing was assisted by a ventilator. Fortunately, CHKD’s newly renovated NICU, which now has 50 private patient rooms and another 10 with two beds each, gave the Virginia Beach couple 12
Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters
the privacy they needed to bond with Cameron as his lungs recovered. “I truly feel like CHKD saved his life,” says Cameron’s mom, Anna. CHKD has been taking care of the region’s sickest newborns since 1972 when it opened its first NICU. At that time, the tiny babies shared a 20-bed unit in a single large room with older children who also needed intensive care. Over the years, the NICU gained its own space, more beds, and more sophisticated technology in “pods” of six to nine babies, making it the region’s largest and most sophisticated intensive care unit for newborns. In September of 2020, CHKD completed its most recent NICU transformation, bringing patients the latest in features and advancements for neonatal care. High on the list of innovations is privacy for patient families like the Glandons. All 70 beds in CHKD’s new
