Highest Level Neonatal Intensive Care Units in Central Alabama
Baptist Health offers our tiniest patients lifesaving treatments. In our neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), we help your baby become healthier while supporting your family. Baptist Medical Center South and Baptist Medical Center East are both home to Level III regional NICUs staffed with teams of specialists who provide the highest level of care in the region. The NICU at Baptist Medical Center South also cares for infants born at other hospitals who need a higher level of care. So, whether you delivered your baby with us or not, you’ll have access to the highest level of NICU resources in the State of Alabama.
Baptist Medical Center East NICU Expansion Now Open
Baptist Medical Center East has recently completed a major expansion to now offer the largest Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) between Birmingham and Mobile! The new 16,000-square-foot thoughtfully designed facility delivers advanced neonatal care in a modern, patient- and family-centered environment.
The expansion added 30 infant beds, featuring 18 private rooms—six of which support overnight family stays complete with sleeper sofas, private showers and quiet spaces—ensuring families can remain close during critical stages of development. The remaining 12 infant beds are arranged in clusters to enhance visibility and support open communication among care teams.
This state-of-the-art unit is fully equipped and ready to deliver the highest level of neonatal care to our tiniest patients, including high acuity services like oscillatory therapy, nitric oxide therapy, therapeutic hypothermia, and bedside EEG monitoring.
Support That Starts From Day One
More than 10,000 NICU care days are provided each year
$10 million expansion, adding 16,000 square feet of NICU space
State-of-the-art high acuity services
Family-centered design complete with a “Little Library” featuring books in multiple languages for parents to read to their newborns
Highly Skilled, Compassionate
Care Team
- Neonatologists (pediatricians with specialized training in newborn care)
- Pediatric ophthalmologists
- Pediatric cardiologists
- Neonatal nurse practitioners
- Registered nurses
- Respiratory therapists
- Technicians
Partnership with Parents
Even the best technology cannot replace the tender care of parents for their new baby. At Baptist Health we work in partnership with parents to develop care plans for their new baby and uphold a compassion-focused mindset. As babies gain strength, parents’ roles expand. Parents may sit by their babies and touch them at first, but later can hold them skin-on-skin; give them a bottle or breastfeed; change diapers and bathe babies, depending on the infant’s progress.
We are open 21 hours a day for you to visit your baby, closed only during shift changes. Grandparents and other guests approved by parents may also visit babies in the NICU. Siblings may visit babies in the NICU after they are screened for illnesses. (During flu season, no children are allowed to visit.)
Preparing for Home
When the momentous day for a baby to go home arrives, our trained staff will prepare new parents with all the information they need, including infant CPR education, car seat assistance, and contact information for all the new parent services we provide. In addition, parents may spend the night with their baby in a room off the NICU to feel more prepared for discharge. Nearby nurses are available to answer questions, so parents feel comfortable taking care of their babies on their own once they arrive home.
