Southwest Suburban Mom and Newborn First to Use Innovative Technology to Bond after Emergency Birth
When Erin began to have a headache while 24 weeks pregnant, she had no idea that she’d be giving birth that day. But as her headache became unbearable she went to the Obstetric department at Silver Cross Hospital. The labor and delivery team discovered that her blood pressure was in a life-threatening range and she had eclampsia – a severe complication of preeclampsia where high blood pressure results in seizures during pregnancy.
As a result, an emergency C-section was performed by Dr. John Bush and Dr. Dexter Arrington, and Erin’s baby daughter, Addie, was born weighing 1 pound and 3 ounces. Due to Addie’s premature birth, Dr. Colleen Malloy, a neonatologist with Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, was there to stabilize the newborn in order to transport her to Lurie Children’s Hospital.
Since mom Erin was extremely ill, she was hospitalized for 10 days initially in the ICU, and then in the Silver Cross Birthing Center and unable to travel to Chicago to be with her newborn baby. Fortunately, by using the innovative technology called Baby Care Connect, Erin was able to see her baby girl and interact with her Lurie care team, who were located over 40 miles away in Chicago.
What is Baby Care Connect?
Baby Care Connect is real-time telemedicine that exchanges medical information from one site to another via electronic communications to improve a patient’s health status. Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago facilitates Baby Care Connect consults to hospitals around the world, including Silver Cross Hospital. Baby Care Connect allows new parents to utilize secure Polycom software to connect to their child’s bedside for a video visit, while also visiting with the care team.
To implement Baby Care Connect, an iPad is set up at the mom’s bedside, while a second iPad is set up at the child’s bedside, and then with just one click, mom and baby are connected.
The Baby Care Connect technology allowed Erin to see her daughter Addie, as well as, speak to the Lurie physicians and nurses in real-time as they explained all the details of her newborn’s care plan just as if the new mom was there in person.
“The Baby Care Connect program made Addie’s birth real to me because I could see her even though I was so far away. It totally helped me bond with her especially after having such a traumatic birth,” said Erin. “My husband Andrew and I are so grateful to the highly skilled physicians and nurses at both Silver Cross Hospital and Lurie Children’s Hospital, who helped us during this life threatening illness. It was so comforting to know both my daughter and I were in such good hands with these expert healthcare professionals, who were utilizing such cutting-edge technology.”
About the Silver Cross Women and Infant Birthing Center
Silver Cross has brought together cutting-edge medical technology with spa-like amenities to make the birthing experience all the more memorable. The Birthing Center at the New Lenox Hospital has 12 luxurious birthing suites designed for labor, delivery and recovery so parents can have the convenience of staying in the same room through recovery followed by a stay in one of 30 private mother-baby suites. Each private suite is fully-equipped with a bathroom with a shower and immersion tub to help with labor pains, blanket warmer, refrigerator, wireless internet access, 30” flat screen TV system, and a comfortable sofa-sleeper so family members can stay around the clock.
Furthermore, a variety of pain relief methods is available 24 hours a day provided by an anesthesiologist. And for deliveries requiring surgery, there are two complete cesarean suites. Lurie Children’s Hospital neonatologists and pediatric hospitalist are onsite 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. And if needed, Lurie Children’s pediatric cardiologists are available to analyze a baby’s echocardiogram in real time through a video linkage with Silver Cross. For more information about the new Silver Cross Women and Infant Birthing Center visit us online.
