Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at St. Charles

Quality Care for the Youngest Babies

The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at St. Charles Bend provides specialized medical care for premature and sick babies with all levels of complications. The Unit operates at Level III status, serving infants at all stages of gestational development.

As the only designated NICU in the region, we care for babies born at St. Charles Bend, as well as those transferred by the AirLink perinatal flight team from other hospitals across Central and Eastern Oregon.

A State-of-the-Art NICU at St. Charles Bend

In fall 2007, St. Charles Bend opened a newly-expanded NICU featuring advanced technology for newborns. The new NICU offers 12 rooms in an environment specially designed to promote a baby's growth and development. Our circadian lighting adjusts for a baby's day and night cycles.

The new NICU rooms are equipped with six innovative Giraffe beds, which convert from an incubator to a radiant warmer with a touch of a button to help eliminate the need for moving fragile babies. The beds include built-in scales and also provide necessary humidity for premature babies.

The NICU Care Team at St. Charles

Our highly skilled neonatal team is managed clinically by board-certified neonatologist, James S. McGuire, MD. Nurses and caregivers specially trained in caring for premature and sick babies provide 24-hour care.

Pediatricians, respiratory therapists, social workers, and audiologists also provide care at the NICU. A chaplain is available to provide spiritual support to families.

Family-Centered Care at the NICU

At the St. Charles NICU, we place a high value on taking care of families. We designed our new unit to make families as comfortable as possible during their time at the NICU.

• Private and semi-private rooms allow parents to spend quiet time bonding with their infants.
• Innovative beds allow parents to touch their baby while in the incubator.
• A warm and soothing family waiting area provides necessary respite.
• A family stay room, equipped with a washer and dryer, is available for a family to spend the night at the NICU
• We offer lactation support for mothers to pump breast milk and provide a refrigerator for storing milk.

Our compassionate staff takes the time to make sure you understand your baby's condition and any tests or treatments needed. We offer a private consultation room for families to meet with physicians, social workers or chaplains.

Our staff and social workers will help connect you with important resources to support your family. The Ronald McDonald House located next to the St. Charles Bend campus provides a place for families to stay while their babies are in the NICU.