“My
son Matthew was born 20 minutes after we arrived at St. Johns, with
what we thought was “a little premature labor” but in
fact was an undiagnosed incompetent cervix. He weighed 789 grams (1 pound,
13 ounces). Throughout his 116 day stay, the doctors, nurses, respiratory
therapists, truly everyone there made us feel very welcome to participate
in the care of our son and to be with him whenever we needed. We feel
so blessed that Matthew was born at St. John's; I knew I would always
feel a part of the “St. John's family” and that I would become
a NICUP, so that I could give back a little of what we received.
When we became
pregnant with Katie, I knew I would need to do an extended period of
bedrest. I received support from my fellow NICUPs throughout that time
and our daughter was born at 34 weeks, 4 days at 4 pounds, 7 ounces.
She had a brief stay in the NICU and once again, we were thankful every
day for the doctors, nurses and all of the other staff who made our
second “stay” in the NICU a positive experience.
Matthew
is now a “typically developing kid,” is involved
in Tae Kwon Do, Boy Scouts and loves to read; Katie is an active and
healthy pre-schooler; I know it is in large part due to the wonderful
staff at SJMMC that we have the fantastic kids we do today.
I have
been a NICUP for over 6 years now and love being to help parents and
families with a baby in the unit. The NICUPs are such a wonderful and
supportive group of people; I feel honored to be a part of this group
and would encourage any parent of a baby who’s been in the NICU
to consider becoming a NICUP."
Kim
M.
