Neonatal Unit reception - Tel: 0161 419 5520

Sarah Fullwood - Neonatal Matron – 0161 419 3949

Claire Woodford - director of Women’s Children’s and diagnostics – 0161 419 2031

Rachael Whittington - Associate Nursing director for Women’s children and diagnostics - 0161 419 5522

We realise that it is a very exciting time in a family to have a new baby. However if the baby is sick or born early, they have a reduced immune system and can pick up infections more easily. It is for this reason that we encourage you to keep visiting of family and friends to a minimum. We encourage you as parents to stay with your baby on the neonatal unit and become partners in the care of your baby along with the neonatal staff.

The nurse in charge makes sure that each baby has a nurse responsible for their daily care. There is a ward round every morning with the consultant of the day and we encourage you to be there. If you are unable to be there at this time the nurse looking after the baby will update you on the discussions and they can arrange for the Dr to return and discuss your baby with you later in the day.

Our Neonatal Unit visiting times are different to our main maternity visiting times due to the nature of the service:

• Parents and Sibling may visit all day
• Other Visitors from 17.00 -19.00
• No other children allowed to visit.

All expectant parents hope that their babies will be healthy. Yet sometimes problems arise that require a new born baby to be admitted to our neonatal unit at Stepping Hill Hospital.  Most will need to be admitted because they have been born too soon. Some may need to come because they are sick or require closer observation. We know that this can be a very anxious time and our aim is to avoid separating mums and their babies wherever possible. You can explore our neonatal and maternity services by viewing our virtual tours.

Our neonatal unit opened in November 2009 and provides state of the art intensive, high dependency and special care.  

Intensive Care - provided for babies who require:

• Respiratory support(ventilation)
• Weighing less than 1000g born less than 28 weeks gestation and require non ventilation  respiratory support
• Any support requiring 1-1 care from a nurse. 

High dependency care - provided for babies who require:

• None ventilatory support weighing over 1,000g
• Special intravenous feeding (TPN). 

Special Care- provided for babies who require:

• Continuous observation and or monitoring
• Recovering from intensive or high dependency care.

Transitional care - is provided for babies who  are well enough to be cared for at their mother’s bedside but require support from the nursing and medical team.

Babies below 27 weeks gestation or with extreme respiratory conditions or requiring surgery may require more specialist interventions or equipment. These babies will be transferred to our link tertiary unit at St Mary’s hospital in Manchester. There are two further tertiary units in greater Manchester providing specialist Neonatal care they are Bolton and Oldham should St Mary’s hospital have no capacity. In most cases where the need is identified early enough this will be done as an  antenatal patient. In some cases  this will be done soon after the baby has been born. A team that are specially trained in transferring sick babies  will carry out the Transfer. As soon as the mother is stable she will also then be transferred to the same hospital as her baby.

When the baby is no longer requiring specialist equipment or care and they are in a stable condition they will be transferred back to Stepping Hill to continue their care.

The nurse in charge makes sure that each baby has a nurse responsible for their daily care. There is a ward round every morning and we encourage you to be there. If you are unable to visit at this time the nurse looking after the baby will update you on the discussions and they can arrange for the Dr to return and discuss your baby with you later in the day.

Once a baby has been admitted to the Neonatal Unit they will receive care tailored to his or her specific needs. The care is planned around the babies and families individual needs.

Parents are encouraged to participate in the care of their baby and to hold them as much as is possible. This has been shown to help comfort the baby and support the bonding and attachment of the parents and baby. Mothers are supported in feeding their babies by nurses specially trained in supporting sick or preterm babies.There are breast pumps that can be used at the cot side or a dedicated room for mothers to express milk. Parents are encouraged to bring clothes toys and other items that will individualise their baby.

The neonatal unit has excellent parent and family rooms with en-suite parent bedrooms, a full kitchen, play facilities, breast feeding rooms and a Transitional Care Unit for babies to stay with their mothers until they are ready for discharge to go home.The length of stay in neonatal care can vary depending on the gestation of the baby. Some babies may require only a few days others a few months. The discharge requirements are that the baby is able to be fed by the parents and that the baby is gaining weight.

Babies who have continuing healthcare needs after they are discharged will be referred to the Children`s Community Nursing team and Health Visitors.

To help with your baby`s development we nurse the babies in incubators in a low light and low noise environment. As they progress into a cot and the special care nursery  they are nursed wherever possible in natural daylight and  have a `quiet time` when we try not to disturb your baby. Parents are welcome to provide skin to skin Kangaroo care during quiet time. At night time the lighting is again dimmed to get babies used to the difference between day and night

How to Find us

The  Neonatal  Unit is accessed easily from the Bramhall Moor Lane entrance to Stepping Hill Hospital. If you enter via the maternity reception entrance we are on the ground floor on the corridor that leads to the main hospital.  A free car park  pass will be issued each month throughout your babies stay on our neonatal unit. If  you are eligible for fefunds of your public transfer fares the general office will inform you of how to claim.