Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
06.09.2022

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)

Our aim is to provide optimum and urgent management and treatment for critically ill or recovering neonates. We treat all types of diseases such as respiratory problems including healthcare of newborn babies and premature infants to provide medical support by using recent technology and knowledge in the field.

In addition, The Building of Children's Hospital has Pediatric Neurology, Cardiology, Gastroenterology, Nephrology, Hematology & Oncology, Pulmonary Diseases, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Allergy and Immunology, Pediatric Surgery, Physiotherapy, Genetics, Opthalmology, Pediatric Psychiatry, Adolescent Health and Developmental Pediatrics in Ankara City Hospital. 

Infants are visited for care by attending physicians, neonatology fellows, assistants of pediatrics and nurses 7/24 daily. In the delivery room, every infant is examined by our specialists and if they need close follow-up and/or treatment, they are transferred by these specialists to NICU.

Additionally, healthy newborns are closely followed by nurses and specialists until they are discharged.

Neonates with any medical complaint are transferred to NICU based on their urgency level. We have 150 NICU beds (all can be adapted to Level 3) 40 and approximately 3500 newborns are hospitalized per year.

Newborn and premature infants discharged from NICU are followed-up by Neonatology Outpatient Polyclinics.

All of our staff working in NICU are trained on a regular basis about newborn care, diseases, resuscitation, breastfeeding, baby-friendly hospital topics in coordination with the The Ministry of Health in Turkey. We aim to provide best quality in service for all neonates with our high technology devices, experienced NICU team on the basis of well established scientific approach.

Equipment and facilities:

• Advanced neonatal incubators and monitors
• Advanced neonatal ventilators (including SIMV, VG, HFO modes)
• Inhaled nitric oxide therapy
• Nasal CPAP device
• High flow oxygen therapy
• Hypothermia therapy
• Portable ultrasonography
• Portable X-ray machine
• Portable echocardiography
• Amplitude integrated electroencephalography
• Peritoneal dialysis
• Led and tunnel type phototherapy devices
• Arterial blood gas analysis
• Laser for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) treatment 

Supportive services:

• Rooming in
• Lactation rooms
• Infant formula preparation room
• Human milk storage
• Total Parenteral Nutrition
• Laboratory (biochemistry, microbiology, hormone)
• Transport incubator with ventilator
• Laser and anti VEGF for ROP treatment
• Neonatal screening for hearing
• NICU designed to be near the delivery rooms
• Lactation consultant and breastfeeding counselling

Procedures:

• Endotracheal entubation and mechanical ventilation (conventional and HFO)
• Umbilical and peripheric central catheterization (arterial and venous)
• Thoracentesis
• Lumbar puncture
• Postoperative follow-up (Pediatric surgery, neurosurgery, cardiovascular surgery)
• Partial and total Exchange transfusion
• Total Parenteral Nutrition
• Enteral Feeding
• Phototherapy
• Inhaled nitric oxide therapy
• aEEG
• Hypothermia therapy
• ROP therapy with laser and anti VEGF injection
• Neonatal screening for hearing
• Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) closure
• Portable ultrasound and echocardiography
• Peritoneal dialysis