Doernbecher Children’s Hospital was built in 1926. In 1950, the first nursery for premature infants was built; the current DNCC, located on 12A of University Hospital, opened in August, 1994.
The DNCC has 46 beds, including 2 isolation rooms. Patient care is provided by neonatologists, fellows, pediatric and family medicine residents, neonatal nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, case Manager, social worker, occupational therapist, and numerous other ancillary health care personnel. Patients and medical staff are divided into two teams: the Blue team manages the more acute infants and the Green team manages less acute infants and attends deliveries.
DNCC Admissions
The DNCC is an open NICU and accepts patients that have been home. The Neonatal attendings accept patients on their service that are up to 1 month, and sometimes even up to 2 months, of age. Patients on the surgical services (Pediatric Surgery, Neurosurgery, etc…) have a Neonatologist Co-Attending (See Surgery Patients in the DNCC below). The Family Medicine Service can admit patients to the DNCC with the Neonatologist acting as the consultant.
Occasionally patients will be admitted to the DNCC that are “overflow” from DCH 9 North. These patients are attended by the admitting service (General Pediatrics, Kaiser, Surgery, etc.). Discussion may occur regarding transferring the patient to the Neonatology Service, if appropriate.
The “on-call” neonatologist or fellow must know about all admissions to the DNCC.
DNCC Routines
A 2-minute scrub is required of all staff on entering the unit (before providing patient care). Remove watches, bracelets, and rings (all but flat bands) and roll up sleeves to elbows.
OR scrubs may be worn and can be obtained from the scrub machine on 14C. Cover gowns must be worn over surgical scrubs when leaving the surgical suites, as per hospital policy.
Glove for all patient contact. Wash hands between patients.
A stethoscope is provided for each infant at the bedside. An otoscope and ophthalmoscope is available on a portable pedestal in the DNCC.
DNCC Rounds
Weekdays:
Patient rounds begin at 0830 (Thursday rounds, following Pediatric Grand Rounds, start at 0900). This may require your arrival at 0700-0730.
The day team and available on call team (including attending) do walk-around sign out rounds beginning at 1600. Resident to Resident specific sign out can occur before or after these rounds. Residents arriving late from off-campus continuity clinic must make contact with the on-call attending.
Weekends:
On weekends, you come in if you are on call.
There is 1-hour overlap between post-call and on-call teams. The weekend on-call team is expected to arrive at 0800 and begin rounding on their patients. At 0900 they take over the responsibility for attending newborn deliveries as part of the resuscitation team. The on-call team must be ready to round with the attending or fellow by 1030.
The post-call team stops attending deliveries at 0900. They may leave for the day after rounding with the attending or fellow and completing their notes and orders, and of course comply with duty hour rules.
Conferences
Students are expected to attend the following conferences:
- 1st Thursdays of the month from 1-2 Resuscitation Conference UHS 8B60.
- Resident Teaching Sessions every Wednesday from 11-12.
NRP Certification
Students may may have the opportunity to become NRP certified depending on their rotation schedule, if interested they need to email JoDee Anderson, M.D. at the beginning of their course. The NRP certification textbook is can be borrowed from Trevor Monteith, medical student coordinator.
Other expectations
Contact by phone or directly talk to the parents of your infants, at least every other day
Prepare a presentation for your follow residents on a selected topic in Neonatology
Cardiac Patients in the DNCC
Rounds on the cardiac patients in the DNCC are done in conjunction with the Pediatric Cardiology team. When their team arrives on the unit we interrupt the regular course of rounds, and round together on the cardiac patients. When completed we resume rounding on the rest of the DNCC patients.
We hope that your DNCC rotation will provide a variety of educational experiences in a positive environment.
