NICU Transport Team

When critically ill babies need advanced neonatal care, a specially trained team travels by land and air to bring them to St. John’s Mercy’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). St. John’s Mercy Children’s Hospital offers the only Level III (highest level) NICU in St. Louis County.

The neonatal transport team typically consists of a neonatal nurse and a respiratory therapist. Under certain conditions, a neonatologist (physician) or neonatal nurse practitioner may accompany the team. Depending on the infant’s condition and the distance, the team travels by ambulance or helicopter. In either case, they are fully equipped to provide high-level neonatal care.

The team uses transport isolettes to provide a “mobile NICU” environment for infants. These special isolettes contain IV pumps, a ventilator, heart and blood pressure monitors, suction and oxygen – all in a self-contained unit specially designed to fit in the ambulance or helicopter.

During transport, the team communicates with neonatologists to keep the baby stable and help the NICU prepare for his or her arrival. Transport nurses use a program called STABLE (Sugar, Temperature, Airway, Blood Pressure, Lab Work and Emotional Support) to further support critical infants during transport. Upon arrival, the infant is admitted for 24-hour neonatal care.