Parents with newborns in neonatal intensive care units undoubtedly experience stress. Because babies can be in the NICU for days, weeks or months, it’s often challenging for parents to always be with their child in person. In an effort to ease the anxiety that often accompanies these situations, Cleveland Clinic Children’s is installing a webcam system in its NICUs, which allows parents to view their newborn in the NICU via video, according to News 5 Cleveland.
The children’s hospital will install more than 85 cameras at various campus locations.
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The webcam system is called NicView, according to DOTmed. As part of it, cameras are attached to each baby’s bed. Each camera is unobtrusive, and NICU nurses can move it or turn it off when holding or treating babies. Additionally, the camera doesn’t negatively affect the other technologies in the NICU.
To watch their baby through the webcam system, parents are given a unique username and password, which are issued by the NICU. They can then log in and watch their baby via any internet-accessible device, such as computers, tablets or smartphones. At their own discretion, parents can also choose to share their login credentials with family members and friends. The images from the webcam are not recorded or stored.
Cleveland Clinic Children’s purchase of the NicView system is partially possible through a monetary donation from the Teter family of Strongsville, Ohio. Several of Todd and Stacy Teter’s five combined children have been cared for at Cleveland Clinic Children’s. When Stacy’s son Caden was born premature, he spent 11 days in the Fairview Hospital NICU. According to DOTmed, Todd commented on the family’s gratefulness:
Whenever we’ve had a sick child at Cleveland Clinic Children’s, we knew it was the best possible place for the success of their health. When Caden was born premature, the hardworking NICU doctors and nurses made a huge difference in Stacy and Caden’s life. We are honored to be able to give back and support their efforts to provide a higher level of patient and family care through the NicView project.
Dr. Giovanni Piedimonte, chairman of the Pediatric Institute and physician-in-chief of Cleveland Clinic Children’s, echoed Todd’s comment. “We are extremely grateful for the Teter family’s generosity and the peace of mind this technology will give other parents,” he said in a statement.
Cleveland Clinic Children’s is the first pediatric hospital in the northeast Ohio region to install the NICU webcam technology, according to DOTmed.
Photo: Photodisc, Getty Images
