Description:

Crawford Long Hospital (CLH) is a 583 bed acute care hospital owned and operated by Emory University that provides a full range of obstetric and newborn care. Labor and Delivery rooms allow parents to experience the birth of their child in comfort and yet know that sophisticated medical care is available if needed. Family Centered Care allows mother and baby to stay together in private rooms for routine newborn care (Level 1). If needed, the Newborn Special Care Unit NICU is a Designated LEVEL 3 unit capable of caring for all infants including the smallest, most fragile premature infant. The NICU provides care both to infants born at CLH and can provide for the transport to CLH of infants born at other Georgia regional hospitals who need medical care that cannot be given at that hospital

Location:

Crawford Long Hospital is centrally located at 550 Peachtree Street in Midtown Atlanta, GA.

 Basic Statistics:  

Current facilities include:

• 24 Neonatal Special Care beds (8 intensive care, I 6 special care

• 24 Mother/baby beds (post-partum beds)

• 11 LD rooms; 2 cesarean section rooms

• 435 Current Special Care Nursery Admissions per year

• 2400 Current Deliveries per Near

CLH was established in 1908 as the Davis Fischer Sanitarium and was deeded to Emory University in 1938. It was the leading delivery and newborn service in Atlanta for years so that many native Atlantans began their lives on Peachtree Street. Also, it was an important site in the education of Emory pediatricians and obstetricians. The delivery and newborn services at CLH are committed to providing Family Centered Care throughout the hospital stay

The Newborn Special Care Unit was established in 1980 to provide the highly technical care needed by sick infants in a nurturing and developmentally appropriate manner. The Special Care Nurseries at CLH are particularly known for the excellent outcomes of very low birth weight prematurely born infants. The nursing and respiratory therapy staff has received extensive training in the art of nurturing these fragile infants. This “nurturing” begins in the LD room and includes control of light, noise and temperature as well as gentle handling. But more importantly, this "nurturing" program calls for the recognition of the family as the most essential factor in each tiny baby's development and growth process. Families are not seen as visitors but rather as a vital part of the baby's care team.

Starting right after delivery mothers are encouraged to supply breast milk for their babies. Almost all of the tiny babies are begun on breast milk as soon as then mother's can produce even a few drops, and mothers are actively supported in their lactation efforts with bedside breast pumping available even in the NICU. Kangaroo care is considered an important method of supporting a mother's emotional needs and a baby's physiological needs in that a mother's touch and smell calm and comfort a baby, helping with oxygenation. Kangaroo care can begin as soon as the baby can be safely moved into mother's arms - even while on a ventilator,

Fathers and other family members are also a vital part of the care team providing support and comfort to mother and baby. Fathers or significant others may stay in the mother's room to keep the family unit together while the mother is in the hospital. Parents are encouraged to ask questions about their newborn's care and to learn about their baby by taking advantage of learning opportunities such as the in-room TV channel on newborn care and other programs

Medical Coverage:

Board-certified Emory Neonatologists, specialists in the care of sick and premature newborns, are on call 24 hours, 7 days a week and supervise and direct medical care. Certified Neonatal Nurse Practitioners, under the direction of the neonatologist, provide 24 hour in-house coverage. Emory physicians representing all the pediatric subspecialties are on staff to provide consultation as needed for special problems. Neonatal transport to our partners at Egleston is readily available for infants who may require Level 4 neonatal care.

Staffing: Only licensed, registered nurses who have been educationally prepared for neonatal care and certified neonatal respiratory therapists staff the NICU. Other important team members include social workers, neonatal pharmacologists, occupational therapists, laboratory and radiology personnel who are available in-house 24 hours a day. Chaplains are also on call 24 hours a day. Lactation specialists are also available to support mothers in breast feeding their babies

Commitment to Excellence: CLH is committed to providing state of the art medical care in an environment that respects families. Press-Gainey recently conducted a patient satisfaction survey which rated the Special Care Nurseries as "excellent", a leader nationally in patient satisfaction

New Unit: A new 20 story acute care hospital and physician office building was completed July 2002. A brand new Maternal-Infant unit is located on the third floor - Labor and Delivery, Family Centered post-partum care and nurseries. A larger, state of the art Special Care Unit was built with special attention being given to space for families - both at the bedside and in support areas. The unit is designed to further enhance family-infant bonding. There is a family lounge with a 4-bed unit for families to spend the night learning to care for their baby prior to dischange. These exciting changes enhance ECLH commitment to caring for babies and families.