The Neonatal Service provides care to newborn infants born at the Women’s or referred for tertiary level intensive or special care.
Infants are cared for in the Newborn Intensive Care, the maternity ward (if appropriate), and the community (through the Neonatal Hospital in the Home service, or through the outpatient follow-up service).
Specialities
Newborn medicine
Clinical inclusion
Infants requiring admission to the Newborn Intensive Care unit, with problems such as:
- Prematurity
- Congenital abnormalities
- Feeding difficulties
- Infection
- Hypoglycaemia
- Jaundice
Many infants are under neonatal care in the maternity ward if they are stable and do not need on-going monitoring or specialised neonatal care.
Referral
Acute referrals are predominantly from the maternity service at the Women’s, or through the Newborn Emergency Transport Service. For babies born at the Women’s who have been discharged home but who require neonatal assessment, referral can be made via a domiciliary midwife, maternal child health nurse, or general practitioner. Families whose babies were born at the Women’s can present to the Women’s Emergency Care department within the first two weeks of life, but beyond that age we recommend evaluation at the local paediatric (children’s) facility.
Special referral instructions
Contact the on call neonatal resident or fellow via Main Reception to discuss the indication for referral.
Urgent referrals
Contact the on call neonatal resident or fellow via Main Reception to discuss the indication for referral.