“ The team at Saint Vincent was simply amazing .”
— Carly , NICU Mom
Twenty-one days as a NICU baby
Andrew was born at 33 weeks , seven weeks premature . He weighed just 3 pounds , 6.9 ounces and his father , Justin , could hold him in one hand .
His mother , Carly , had preeclampsia ( high blood pressure ). She stayed in the hospital for 3 ½ weeks to extend her pregnancy as long as possible . Andrew ’ s premature delivery “ didn ’ t come as a surprise ,” said Carly . “ But to say we weren ’ t terrified would be a lie .”
Saint Vincent ’ s Level III neonatal intensive care unit ( NICU was prepared , with a bed warmed up and waiting . AHN neonatologist , Dr . Sam Voora , gave the baby a good chance of surviving , odds that got better with every passing day in the NICU .
“ I was able to hold him before he had to go to the NICU ,” Carly said . She and her husband were by Andrew ’ s side for three weeks , helping NICU doctors and nurses care for their son .
The goals for Andrew were for him to maintain his body temperature on his own and transition off a feeding tube . He got stronger and moved to an open crib , then started to take a bottle . He went home on Aug . 8 , 2019 , after 21 days in the NICU . “ The NICU was wonderful , a perfect experience ,” said Carly . “ He ’ s everything we could ’ ve asked for .”
Andrew is now an active , wouldn ’ t-know-anything-was-everwrong , 1 ½-year-old . Sometimes , he even plays nicely with his 3-year-old sister , Claire .
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“ To see Andrew grow and develop right before our eyes , when he wasn ’ t even supposed to have been born yet , was remarkable ,” she said . When Andrew ’ s parents couldn ’ t be there , they used the NICVIEW ® camera ’ s video stream to check on him .