What's Vanderbilt like?

[mauigal]

Hi everyone!

Anyone know anything about Vanderbilt's Monroe Carell Jr Children Hospital level lll NICU? I am a long time NICU RN (17 years +) and am thinking of relocating to Tenn. I know that they have a new unit and it seems that they have infants in individual rooms, which is somthing I have not worked with. What is it like having your infants in diffrent rooms by themselves. Also, I am working in a large inner city unit (58+ beds) and for the most part we don't see alot of parents on a regular basis, do the parents stay in the rooms with their infant?

[Traveler]

I live in East Tennessee, but spent about a month at Vanderbilt with my 11 year old daughter this spring. Obviously we were not in the NICU and I can't speak as a staff member, but as a parent. The facility is beautiful- one of the nicest hospitals I have ever seen. It is very family friendly. The staff that I spoke with seemed very happy there and they had spectacular continuing education opportunities. My daughter was in 4 different hospitals from Nashville to Knoxville to Philadelphia for 2 months, so I have seen the nursing care at a variety of places. The nurses at Vanderbilt were the best of the 4 hospitals that she was in. It is a teaching hospital, so the doctors and nurses are on their toes, see lots of interesting things, and are very professional. Children's Hosp. of Philadelphia seemed to do more hi tech and new stuff, but it is a much larger hospital than Vanderbilt.

Ann

[PICUFL]

I work in the PICU at Vandy and I know a bit about the NICU- The parents are allowed to say in the childs room except from 6:45a-8a and 6:45p-8p I believe. There are 8 sleep rooms (mini-hotel rooms) that are offered but with over 60 patients at times that doesn't sleep many! A lot of them sleep in the waiting rooms.