Smith Hager Bajo

I am very interested in the idea of single room care for NICU as well as LDR vs LDRP approach.

Regarding Single Family Room (SFR) NICUs, our latest count indicates that there are at least 40 units with this concept in operation, being planned or under construction in the United States. They range from longer-standing ones like Children's Regional Medical Center in Seattle, WA (1999) and Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines, IA (2001) to newer ones that opened last year at Nebraska Medical Center and Elliot Hospital in New Hampshire. We're tracking several under construction throughout the country such as Community North in IN, where the largest single room maternity care unit in the world is being built in addition to their SFR NICU.

Do you know where the first SFR NICU was built, at least in recorded history? Try France in 1985 - for infection control reasons mostly. Do you know what the most common challenges and benefits have been reported to date? Stay tuned...

Smith Hager Bajo continues to compile and update the list of units, track the design models and analyze the operational issues. We have been involved in planning a variety of models over the years from SFR to pinwheels, semi-private rooms and pods. We have a clearinghouse of information on design guidelines and research. We know the common operational issues and many solutions that are working and not working for individual situations.

For comments or more information, feel free to contact us via this blog, website or by phone. We love to talk about this timely and important topic.