Children’s Hospital is Designated a Level III Certified NICU
Northwest Texas Healthcare System is pleased to announce it has received designation as a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care service provider from the Texas Department of State Health Services. Two key requirements of the Level III neonatal designation are 24-hour in-house coverage by specialized personnel and board-certified neonatologists available around the clock.
The designation is a result of legislation passed in 2013 which required Texas to implement neonatal levels of care designations with the purpose of ensuring Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) have the expertise and resources needed to comply with mandatory rules guiding provision of appropriate high-quality care. This legislation became effective in June, 2016 with all NICUs required to be designated by September, 2018.
Established in 1974 as a pioneer in neonatal intensive care, The Children's Hospital at Northwest Texas Healthcare System has the largest Level III NICU in the Panhandle. Northwest’s NICU is equipped with advanced medical technology required for a wide range of conditions, including comprehensive care for critically ill babies, those born as early as 23 weeks gestational age, and for babies with a variety of congenital, respiratory and infectious conditions.
Our Northwest NICU team includes neonatologists, neonatal nurse practitioners, certified registered nurses, respiratory, occupational, and physical therapists, social workers and breastfeeding specialists, who are all specially trained to work with infants in the NICU. Our care team strives to provide family centered care while coordinating any necessary consultations with other specialists, including ophthalmologists, cardiologists, surgeons and pulmonologists. Our highly trained team of physicians and nurses also provide annual education and skills training to regional hospital physicians and staff to help build skills to ensure they can confidently assess and stabilize premature infants.
As a leader in emergency services, the Northwest Children’s Hospital is home to the only neonatal transport team in the region. Our team of specialty trained neonatal nurses, respiratory therapists, and neonatologist are available 24-hours a day, seven days a week. Utilizing both ground and air services, they travel throughout the region to stabilize and transfer infants who require a higher level of care.